Los Andes, founded in July 31, 1791 as Santa Rosa de Los Andes, is a Chile

Chile

Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

an city and commune located in the province of the same name

Province of Los Andes, Chile

Los Andes Province is one of eight provinces of the central Chilean region of Valparaíso . The city of Los Andes is the capital of the province.-Administration:...

, in Valparaíso Region

Valparaíso Region

The V Valparaíso Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions.Valparaíso Region, 2006 With the country's third highest population of 1,539,852 million in 2002 and third smallest area of , the region is Chile's second most densely populated after the Santiago Metropolitan Region...

 ("Fifth Region" of Chile). It lies on the route between Santiago

Santiago, Chile

Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...

 and Chile's primary border crossing with Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

 by way of the summit of the Uspallata Pass

Uspallata Pass

The Uspallata Pass or Bermejo Pass is an Andean pass which provides a route between the wine-growing region around the Argentine city of Mendoza, the Chilean city Los Andes and Santiago the Chilean capital situated in the central Chilean valley...

 in the Andes

Andes

The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...

 mountain range.

Demographics

According to the 2002 census

Census

A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

 of the National Statistics Institute

National Statistics Institute (Chile)

The National Statistics Institute of Chile is a state-run organization of the Government of Chile, created in the second half of the 19th century and tasked with performing a general census of population and housing, then collecting, producing and publishing official demographic statistics of...

, Los Andes spans an area of 1248.3 sqkm and has 60,198 inhabitants (30,247 men and 29,951 women). Of these, 55,388 (92%) lived in urban area

Urban area

An urban area is characterized by higher population density and vast human features in comparison to areas surrounding it. Urban areas may be cities, towns or conurbations, but the term is not commonly extended to rural settlements such as villages and hamlets.Urban areas are created and further...

s and 4,810 (8%) in rural areas. The population grew by 21% (10,451 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Administration

As a commune, Los Andes is a third-level administrative division of Chile administered by a municipal council

Municipal council

A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...

, headed by an alcalde

Alcalde

Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An alcalde was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian cabildo and judge of first instance of a town...

 who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Mauricio Navarro S.. The council has the following members:

• Marta Yochum G.
• Oscar Araya S.
• Alejandro Tapia C.
• Sergio Montenegro P.
• Ivan Salinas S.
• Julio Lobos L.

Within the electoral divisions of Chile, Los Andes is represented in the Chamber of Deputies

Chamber of Deputies of Chile

The Chamber of Deputies of the Republic of Chile is the lower house of Chile's bicameral Congress. Its organisation and its powers and duties are defined in articles 42 to 59 of Chile's current constitution....

 by Mr. Marco Antonio Núñez (PDC

Christian Democratic Party

Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...

) and Mr. Gaspar Rivas (RN

National Renewal (Chile)

National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...

) as part of the 11th electoral district, (together with San Esteban

San Esteban, Chile

San Esteban is a city and commune in the Los Andes Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. The commune spans an area of .-Demographics:...

, Calle Larga

Calle Larga

Calle Larga is city and one of four communes in the Los Andes Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region.-Administration:...

, Rinconada

Rinconada

Rinconada is a city and commune in the Los Andes Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region. It was created on 18 January 1897 by Federico Errázuriz Echaurren.-Demographics:...

, San Felipe

San Felipe, Chile

San Felipe is a commune and the capital city of the San Felipe de Aconcagua Province in central Chile's Valparaíso Region. It is located north of the national capital of Santiago...

, Putaendo

Putaendo

Putaendo is a city and commune in the San Felipe de Aconcagua Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region.-History:Before the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors, Putaendo was a very old town of hunters and gatherers. The Spanish were attracted to gold mines discovered in the outskirts of town...

, Santa María

Santa María, Chile

Santa María is a city and commune in the San Felipe de Aconcagua Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region.-Demographics:...

, Panquehue

Panquehue

Panquehue is a Chilean town and commune in San Felipe de Aconcagua Province, Valparaíso Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Panquehue spans an area of and has 6,567 inhabitants . Of these, 2,904 lived in urban areas and 3,663 in rural areas...

, Llaillay and Catemu

Catemu

Catemu is a city and commune in the San Felipe de Aconcagua Province of central Chile's Valparaíso Region.-Demographics:According to data from the 2002 Census of Population and Housing, the Catemu commune had 12,112 inhabitants; of these, 6,706 lived in urban areas and 5,406 in rural areas. At...

). The commune is represented in the Senate

Senate of Chile

The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile.-Composition:...

 by Ignacio Walker Prieto (PDC

Christian Democratic Party

Christian democratic parties are those political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social teaching, and it continues to be influential in Europe and...

) and Lily Pérez San Martín (RN

National Renewal (Chile)

National Renewal , is a liberal conservative political party belonging to the Chilean right-wing political coalition Coalition for Change in conjunction with the Independent Democratic Union and the Chile First movement...

) as part of the 5th senatorial constituency (Valparaíso-Cordillera).

Economy

Until 2004, a Peugeot car plant assembled vehicles in Los Andes (Automotora Franco-Chilena). Peugeot's 404, 504, 505, 205 & 206 models were produced from French and Argentine components, being exported to other Latin American markets.

Transport

Los Andes stands at the beginning of the now derelict metre gauge

Metre gauge

Metre gauge refers to narrow gauge railways and tramways with a track gauge of . In some African, American and Asian countries it is the main gauge. In Europe it has been used for local railways in France, Germany, and Belgium, most of which were closed down in mid 20th century. Only in Switzerland...

 Transandine Railway, opened in 1910, which once ran to Mendoza

Mendoza, Argentina

Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...

 in Argentina

Argentina

Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

, providing a link between the broad gauge

Broad gauge

Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...

 line from Valparaiso

Valparaíso

Valparaíso is a city and commune of Chile, center of its third largest conurbation and one of the country's most important seaports and an increasing cultural center in the Southwest Pacific hemisphere. The city is the capital of the Valparaíso Province and the Valparaíso Region...

 to Los Andes, operated by the Chilean State Railway, and the broad gauge line from Mendoza to Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires

Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...

 operated by the Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway

Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway

The Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway was one of the Big Four broad gauge, , British-owned companies that built and operated railway networks in Argentina....

. It is now being reconstructed. Due to the lack of concrete actions to restore this link, the most recent estimations are that the line could be restored around October, 2009. However, as of June 2011, there is no indication of any restorative work underway.