At least 900 tourists stranded near South American lost city due to protest

Train operator PeruRail said the service had been suspended as ‘rocks of various sizes’ blocked the track

At least 900 tourists have been left stranded near Peru's ancient Inca citadel of Machu Picchu after their passenger train was suspended due to a protest, the country's tourism minister said.

Train operator PeruRail said the service had been suspended on Monday because the route in Peru's mountainous Cusco region had been blocked by "rocks of various sizes" as local residents clashed with authorities and bus companies.

Protesters say there is a lack of transparency and fairness in the process of replacing tourist bus operator Consettur after its concession expired, paving the way for different local businesses to benefit from the vital industry.

Tourism Minister Desilu Leon said 1,400 tourists had been evacuated on Monday, but some 900 remained stranded in Aguas Calientes, the closest town to the nation's most-visited cultural site.

The Incan ruins of Machu Picchu (Reuters)

The protest began last week after the concession ended of Consettur, the bus company that ferries tourists from Aguas Calientes to the entrance of the 15th-century Inca citadel.

A neighbouring district commissioned another bus company to provide services in its place, but protesters in Aguas Calientes prevented it from operating.

Meanwhile, PeruRail's local unit said "third parties" had excavated part of its rail route, which affected the track's stability and slowed down the evacuation of tourists.

New7Wonders, a campaign group which highlights global sites of major cultural heritage, said in a statement over the weekend that it had sent a letter to Peru's government warning that if the conflict escalates, Machu Picchu's credibility as one of the New Wonders of the World could be affected.

A global poll organised by the group had in 2007 selected Machu Picchu as a world wonder, alongside the Great Wall of China, India's Taj Mahal and Mexico's Chichen Itza.