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Transportation
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Puerto Rico |
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Railways
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Total: 96km
narrow gauge: 96km 1.000-m gauge(2003)
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Highways
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Total: 25328km
paved: 23665km (including 426km of expressway
unpaved: 1363km (2004)
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Ports and Harbors
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Aguadilla, Arecibo, Fajardo, Guanica, Guayanilla, Guayama, Mayaguez, Playa de Ponce, San Juan
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Merchant Marine
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Total: 2 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 36,728 GRT/37,048 DWT
by type: roll on/roll off 2
foreign-owned: 2 (United States 2)
registered in other countries: 1 (2005)
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Airports
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30 (2004)
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Airports -
with paved runways
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Total: 17
over 3,047 m: 3
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 5 (2004 est.)
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Airports -
with unpaved runways
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Total: 13
1,524 to 2, 437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 2
under 914 m: 10 (2004 est.)
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Geography
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Puerto Rico
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Location
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Caribbean, island between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of the Dominican Republic
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Geographic Coordinates
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18 15 N, 66 30 W
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Map References
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Central America and the Caribbean
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Area
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total: 9,104 sq km
land: 8,959 sq km
water: 145 sq km
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Area Comparative
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Slightly less than than three time the size of Rhode Island
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Land Boundaries
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0km
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Coastline
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501km
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Maritime Claims
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Territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone:
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Climate
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Tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperature variation
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Terrain
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Mostly mountains with coastal plain belt in north; mountains precipitous to sea on west coast; sandy beaches along most coastal areas
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Elevation Extremes
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Lowest point: Caribbean
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Natural Resources
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Some copper and nickel; potential for onshore and offshore oil
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Land Use
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arable land: 3.95%
permanent crops: 5.52%
other: 90.53% (2001)
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Irrigated land
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400 sq km (1998 est.)
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Natural hazards
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Periodic droughts; hurricanes
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Environment - current issues
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Erosion; occasional drought causing water shortages
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Geography - note
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Important location along the Mona Passage - a key shipping lane to the Panama Canal; San Juan is one of the biggest and best natural harbors in the Caribbean; many small rivers and high central mountains ensure land is well watered; south coast relatively dry; fertile coastal plain belt in north
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