Eritrea - Transportation

Geography - People - Economy - Government - Communications - Transportation - Military - Transnational Issues

Eritrea is located Eastern Africa, bordering the Red Sea, between Djibouti and Sudan. The climate is hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler and wetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually, heaviest June to September); semiarid in western hills and lowlands. The terrain is dominated by extension of Ethiopian north-south trending highlands, descending on the east to a coastal desert plain, on the northwest to hilly terrain and on the southwest to flat-to-rolling plains.

Airports

This entry gives the total number of airports or airfields recognizable from the air. The runway(s) may be paved (concrete or asphalt surfaces) or unpaved (grass, earth, sand, or gravel surfaces) but may include closed or abandoned installations. Airports or airfields that are no longer recognizable (overgrown, no facilities, etc.) are not included. Note that not all airports have accommodations for refueling, maintenance, or air traffic control.
Airports : 18 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways - total : 4
Airports - with paved runways - over 3,047 m : 2
Airports - with paved runways - 2,438 to 3,047 m : 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total : 14
Airports - with unpaved runways - over 3,047 m : 1
Airports - with unpaved runways - 2,438 to 3,047 m : 1
Airports - with unpaved runways - 1,524 to 2,437 m : 6
Airports - with unpaved runways - 914 to 1,523 m : 4
Airports - with unpaved runways - under 914 m : 2 (2007)

Heliports

This entry gives the total number of heliports with hard- surface runways, helipads, or landing areas that support routine sustained helicopter operations exclusively and have support facilities including one or more of the following facilities
Heliports : 1 (2007)

Railways

This entry states the total route length of the railway network and of its component parts by gauge
Railways - total : 306 km
Railways - narrow gauge : 306 km 0.950-m gauge (2006)

Roadways

This entry gives the total length of the road network and includes the length of the paved and unpaved portions.
Roadways - total : 4,010 km
Roadways - paved : 874 km
Roadways - unpaved : 3,136 km (2000)

Merchant marine

Merchant marine may be defined as all ships engaged in the carriage of goods; or all commercial vessels (as opposed to all nonmilitary ships), which excludes tugs, fishing vessels, offshore oil rigs, etc. This entry contains information in four fields - total, ships by type, foreign-owned, and registered in other countries. *** Total includes the number of ships (1,000 GRT or over), total DWT for those ships, and total GRT for those ships. DWT or dead weight tonnage is the total weight of cargo, plus bunkers, stores, etc., that a ship can carry when immersed to the appropriate load line. GRT or gross register tonnage is a figure obtained by measuring the entire sheltered volume of a ship available for cargo and passengers and converting it to tons on the basis of 100 cubic feet per ton; there is no stable relationship between GRT and DWT. *** Ships by type includes a listing of barge carriers, bulk cargo ships, cargo ships, chemical tankers, combination bulk carriers, combination ore/oil carriers, container ships, liquefied gas tankers, livestock carriers, multifunctional large-load carriers, petroleum tankers, passenger ships, passenger/cargo ships, railcar carriers, refrigerated cargo ships, roll-on/roll-off cargo ships, short-sea passenger ships, specialized tankers, and vehicle carriers. *** Foreign-owned are ships that fly the flag of one country but belong to owners in another. *** Registered in other countries are ships that belong to owners in one country but fly the flag of another.
Merchant marine - total : 5
Merchant marine - by type : cargo 2, liquefied gas 1, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2008)

Ports and terminals

This entry lists major ports and terminals primarily on the basis of the amount of cargo tonnage shipped through the facilities on an annual basis. In some instances, the number of containers handled or ship visits were also considered.
Ports and terminals : Assab, Massawa

More Information about the country