Jærbanen
Encyclopedia
The Jæren Line 74.7 kilometres (46.4 mi) long railway line between Stavanger
and Egersund
, in Jæren
, Norway
. The line is officially the western-most part of the Sørland Line. Owned by the Norwegian National Rail Administration, the line has double track
from Stavanger Station
to Sandnes Station
, and single track
from Sandnes to Egersund Station
. The line is electrified
at and equipped with centralized traffic control
and GSM-R
. The line is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail
and intercity trains along the Sørland Line, both operated by the Norwegian State Railways. CargoNet
runs container freight trains on the line, which terminate at Ganddal Freight Terminal.
The line opened as a narrow gauge
stand-alone line on 27 February 1878. The railway was extended from Egersund to Flekkefjord
as the Flekkefjord Line
in 1904. The Jæren Line's only branch, the Ålgård Line from Ganddal
to Ålgård
, opened in 1924. In 1944, the Sørland Line was extended to Sira
on the Flekkefjord Line, and the Jæren Line was integrated in the main railway network. Because of this, the line was converted to standard gauge
.
, Mariero
, Jåttåvågen
, Gausel
and Sandnes Sentrum. Though Sandnes, the line runs on an elevated section. Ganddal Freight Terminal is located close to Ganddal Station and is the only freight terminal in Jæren. It has an annual capacity for 80,000 containers and can handle 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) long trains. The line continues through the municipalities of Klepp
, Time
, Hå
and Eigersund
.
service along the coast. At a meeting at the sheriff's office in Klepp in 1866, Forest Manager Andreas Tanberg Gløersen launched the first idea to build a railway to connect Stavanger and Egersund. Gløersen had been to the Netherlands and both observed and ridden on a train. Later the same year, a meeting was held with representatives from the municipalities of Hå, Klepp and Time.
The meeting concluded that a railway should be built, and the responsibility for the preparatory work was given to County Governor Vilhelm Ludvig Herman von Munthe af Morgenstierne
. He started by conducting traffic counting at throughout the district. This resulted in an estimate for a revenue of NOK 215,000 and a cost of NOK 153,000 per year. Originally the proposal was to connect the various villages in Jæren together. But during planning, it became clear from national authorities that the line would be part of a national railway that would connect Rogaland to Eastern Norway, giving the line a straighter profile and running via fewer communities.
The proposal was sent to the Ministry of the Interior, who recommended the line to the Parliament of Norway. The plans were presented to parliament on 6 May 1874, and passed in June. During the celebrations in Stavanger that evening, a gunner lost his hand following the explosion of a cannon. The line opened on 27 February 1878.
On 5 February 1875, a railway committee of the parliament published a report recommending that there be built four national railways to connect western and central Norway to eastern Norway. The Sørland Line was part of this plan, and was scheduled to be built between 1876 and 1888. The line was proposed to be built via the Vestfold Line to Skien
and onwards along the south coast before connecting with the Jæren Line at Egersund. However, Norway was hit by the Depression of 1882–85
, which reduced railway construction to a minimum. In addition, the choice of route through Agder
was disputed: either the populated coast, or in the sparsely populated inland. This issue kept the line at bay, and not until 1908 was agreement about the inland route chosen.
In 1894, the Railway Committee recommended parliament to prioritize three new lines, the Bergen Line, the Rauma Line and the Gjøvik Line. However, this met protests from representatives from Agder, and it became clear that there would not be a majority to build the Bergen Line unless part of the Sørland Line was built. Jørgen Løvland
proposed a compromise in which the Flekkefjord Line be built from Egersund to Flekkefjord, as the first part of the Sørland Line, as well as the Treungen Line. The Flekkefjord Line opened on 31 October 1904.
The Ålgård Line was originally launched as an alternative route for the Sørland Line. In 1910, a committee was appointed that conducted preliminary planning of the line. Although NSB's board supported the line, construction was placed on hold. In 1919, local politicians proposed that the line be built administratively as part of the Jæren Line, but this was rejected by the government. Instead, the ministry wanted to again consider the Ålgård Line as part of the Sørland Line, and proposed that the Ålgård Line be built with standard gauge—which would be used for the Sørland Line—instead of the narrow gauge used by the Jæren Line. However, there would be no need for standard gauge until the Sørland Line was extended to Rogaland, so the line was planned to be built with narrow gauge track, but all other installations would be prepared for standard gauge. The first train to operate on the line went from Stavanger on 20 December 1924, and the Ålgård Line became the last state-owned railway in Norway to be opened with narrow gauge.
The Sørland Line was being built in standard gauge, and when the line was to connect to the Flekkefjord Line at Moi Station
, the Jæren Line would have to be rebuilt to standard gauge to avoid a break-of-gauge
. Preliminary work to ease the conversion was done during the 1920s. The conversion itself took only two days, during which the line was closed. On 29 April 1944, a test train was run from Sira
to Stavanger. The upgrade was officially opened on 1 May, after which the Jæren Line was connected to Oslo, and considered part of the Sørland Line. When the Jæren Line was built, the station in Egersund was located in the city center. With the opening of the Sørland Line, the station was moved 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) north of the city center.
Sandnes
became the third-largest intermediate stop on the Sørland Line, after Drammen Station
and Kristiansand Station
. To develop a better solution for serving Sandnes, the track through the city center was rebuilt to an elevated railway
. Given the unofficial name The High Line , the new Sandnes Station
was located further south of the center of Sandnes, at Skeiene. The new station and the elevated section opened on 1 October 1955.
The commuter rail system was introduced from 1 January 1992, after an agreement between NSB, Rogaland County Municipality
and the six municipalities along the line. NSB introduced new Class 69 multiple units, while the county municipality introduced a fare coordination with the corresponding bus services. The increase in service involved 15 departures per direction per day, and the travel time from Stavanger to Egersund was reduced from 80 to 55 minutes. In addition, NSB started with a half-hour headway
between Stavanger and Sandnes. A new station, Sandnes Sentrum, was opened in the city center of Sandnes at the time the new service started. NSB stated that the goal was to increase the daily ridership from 2,900 to 5,000 passengers by 1994. The stations were also upgraded, including new sheds. The Scanet
train radio system was installed between 1993 and 1996.
The service was a success, and NSB received a 112% increase in ridership the first year. In 1993, NSB won Statens Byggeskikkpris, among other things for the new sheds on the Jæren Line. By 1995, ridership was up 150% from before the commuter rail started. In 1997, NSB announced that they would order 36 new electric multiple units, which would among other things replace the aging trains on the Jæren Commuter Rail. The new Class 72 trains were put into service on 8 August 2002, several years after schedule. In April 2004, the rail administration opened Jåttå Station
, which was located close to Viking Stadion
, the new home ground of Tippeligaen
side Viking FK.
Construction of a new freight terminal at Ganddal started in 2005, was completed in 2007 and opened on 21 January 2008. The terminal cost NOK 500 million and replaced the terminal at Stavanger Station. Both the terminal and the double track were to use the newly developed signaling system Merkur, but the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate
would not give permission for the system to be installed. Because of this, the signaling system at the terminal is operated manually and therefore cannot be used with full capacity.
To further increase capacity and regularity, the Norwegian National Rail Administration decided to rebuild the section from Stavanger to Sandnes to double track. The upgrade involved closing Hillevåg Station, and building three new stations: Paradis, Jåttåvågen and Gausel. Construction was started in 2006 and estimated to cost 2.2 billion Norwegian krone
. From April to November 2009, the section from Ganddal to Stavanger was closed while the last part of the upgrade was completed. The new line was opened on 16 November 2009 and from 14 December, the 15-minute headway was introduced between Stavanger and Sandnes.
is a local services operated by NSB between Stavanger and Egersund. The service between Stavanger and Sandnes operate with a fixed schedule every 15 minutes. Of the trains to Sandnes, half continue onwards to Nærbø, giving a 30 minute headway. One train per hour operate all the way to Egersund. On weekends and late evenings, there is a reduced service. Travel time from Stavanger to Sandnes is 19 minutes, from Stavanger to Nærbø is 37 minutes, and from Stavanger to Egersund is 1 hour and 7 minutes. The operating deficits are covered through subsidies by the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
. NSB uses four-car NSB Class 72
electric multiple units on the service.
NSB also operates up to eight daily intercity services to Kristiansand Station
. Up to five of these services continue onwards to Oslo Central Station. Travel time from Stavanger to Kristiansand is 3 hours, while travel time all the way to Oslo is seven and a half hours. One of the services to Oslo is a night train
. Intercity trains along the Jæren Line only call at Egersund, Bryne, Sandnes Sentrum and Stavanger, with travel time from Stavanger to Egersund being slightly less than an hour. CargoNet
operates up to five container freight trains from Oslo per day and one from Drammen per day to Ganddal Freight Terminal.
, which would use parts of the existing double track between Stavanger and Sandnes.
The Ålgård Line is a 12.24 kilometres (7.6 mi) long railway which branches from the Sørland Line at Ganddal. It runs via Foss-Eikeland
and Figgjo
to Ålgård
, and was opened on 20 December 1924. Passenger services were terminated on on 1 November 1955, making it the line with the most frequent passenger traffic in Norway to be closed. Freight trains operated until the 1988. The first 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) are used for freight trains to access a cement factory. The line has officially been closed, but has not been abandoned. The National Rail Administration retains ownership and can in the future renovate the line for operation. The annual traffic potential for the Ålgård Line is 600,000 passengers. Plans call for stations at Vagle, Figgjo, Kongeparken
and Ålgård. It is possible to operate the trains that currently terminate at Sandnes to Ålgård without new infrastructure investments to the Sørland Line. However, the line would need a full upgrade, including new tracks, electric system and signaling. Ålgård is also a good location for a park and ride
for European Route E39
.
A branch to Sola has been considered to allow the trains to operate to Sola
and the airport. The line would branch from the Sørland Line south of Gausel, and be built so trains from the branch could run both northwards and southwards. Proposed stations include the airport, Solakrossen
, Forus
West, Statoil
's head office and possibly the shopping center Kvadrat. This would give a travel time of 17 minutes from the airport to the city center, and 10 minutes from the airport to Sandnes. This route has, however, also been proposed as part of the light rail system. This will give about 2.5 million annual passengers.
Plans have been made that would either double or triple the frequency on all the services on the existing commuter rail network. However, increased frequency south of Sandnes will require double track. Should the frequency be doubled, double track would have to be built to where the current service to Nærbo terminates. Plans call for these trains to possibly be extended to either Varhaug or Vigrestad. Should the frequency be tripled, double track would be needed all the way to Egersund. Parts of the Jæren Line is straight enough to permit speeds between 200 kilometre per hour. However, several shorter parts need to be rebuilt to allow this, particularly between Egersund and Ogna, and from Bryne to Ganddal. In particular, the section from Ogna to Egersund would probably have to follow an all-new route, should it be rebuilt to double track. The effect of higher maximum speeds is greatest for intercity trains, as the commuter trains have so frequent stops they have little to gain from the increased speeds.
Egersund Station has been proposed moved back to its old location for the commuter rail, giving Egersund two stations: one for commuter trains and one for regional trains. The right-of-way still exists for this route, making construction easy. A new Sørland Line has also been proposed, which would run south instead of north from Egersund. This would mean that a city center location for Egersund Station would be better for intercity trains as well.
Rogaland County Municipality is in the planning process of building a light rail in Greater Stavanger. The initial plans call for a Y-shaped service which could be operational by 2018, with possibilities for further expansion. As of 2010, the plans call for a 16.2 kilometres (10.1 mi) line from Stavanger to Sandnes, and a 7.7 or branch to the airport. The travel time from Sandnes to Stavanger would be 29 minutes, and is therefore a supplement to the commuter rail. The light rail would have interchange with the Jæren Line at Stavanger, Paradis, Jåttåvågen, Gausel and Sandnes Sentrum. Several new branches of the light rail have been proposed for later construction.
Stavanger
Stavanger is a city and municipality in the county of Rogaland, Norway.Stavanger municipality has a population of 126,469. There are 197,852 people living in the Stavanger conurbation, making Stavanger the fourth largest city, but the third largest urban area, in Norway...
and Egersund
Egersund
The town of Egersund was established as a municipality January 1, 1838 . It was merged with the surrounding municipality of Eigersund January 1, 1965....
, in Jæren
Jæren
Jæren is a traditional district in the county of Rogaland. The others are Dalane, Ryfylke and Haugalandet.Jæren is the largest flat lowland area in Norway, stretching from the municipality of Randaberg in the north to Hå in the south. The coast is flat compared to the rest of the Norwegian coast,...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The line is officially the western-most part of the Sørland Line. Owned by the Norwegian National Rail Administration, the line has double track
Double track
A double track railway usually involves running one track in each direction, compared to a single track railway where trains in both directions share the same track.- Overview :...
from Stavanger Station
Stavanger Station
Stavanger Station is a railway station located in downtown Stavanger in Rogaland, Norway and the terminus of the Sørland Line. The station is served by regional trains to Kristiansand and the Jæren Commuter Rail.-History:...
to Sandnes Station
Sandnes Station
Sandnes Sentrum Station is a railway station located in downtown Sandnes in Rogaland, Norway. The station is served by regional trains to Kristiansand and the Jæren Commuter Rail. The station is south of Stavanger Station.-History:...
, and single track
Single track (rail)
A single track railway is where trains in both directions share the same track. Single track is normally used on lesser used rail lines, often branch lines, where the traffic density is not high enough to justify the cost of building double tracks....
from Sandnes to Egersund Station
Egersund Station
Egersund Station is a railway station located at Egersund in Eigersund, Norway on the Sørland Line. The station is south of Stavanger and is served by regional trains between Stavanger and Kristiansand as well as being the terminus of the Jæren Commuter Rail to Stavanger.-History:The station is...
. The line is electrified
Railway electrification system
A railway electrification system supplies electrical energy to railway locomotives and multiple units as well as trams so that they can operate without having an on-board prime mover. There are several different electrification systems in use throughout the world...
at and equipped with centralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control is a form of railway signalling that originated in North America and centralizes train routing decisions that were previously carried out by local signal operators or the train crews themselves. The system consists of a centralized train dispatcher's office that...
and GSM-R
GSM-R
GSM-R, Global System for Mobile Communications - Railway or GSM-Railway is an international wireless communications standard for railway communication and applications. A sub-system of European Rail Traffic Management System , it is used for communication between train and railway regulation...
. The line is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail
Jæren Commuter Rail
The Jæren Commuter Rail is a commuter train service operated along the western-most part of the Sørland Line in Jæren, Norway. It is operated by the Norwegian State Railways with nine Class 72 electric multiple units. The service acts as a commuter rail connecting Stavanger to its suburbs,...
and intercity trains along the Sørland Line, both operated by the Norwegian State Railways. CargoNet
CargoNet
CargoNet AS is the primary operator of freight trains on the Norwegian railway system. It was formed as NSB Gods after NSB fissioned into a passenger and a freight company. NSB Gods changed its name to CargoNet at the beginning of 2002. It is owned by NSB and the Swedish freight company Green Cargo...
runs container freight trains on the line, which terminate at Ganddal Freight Terminal.
The line opened as a narrow gauge
Narrow gauge
A narrow gauge railway is a railway that has a track gauge narrower than the of standard gauge railways. Most existing narrow gauge railways have gauges of between and .- Overview :...
stand-alone line on 27 February 1878. The railway was extended from Egersund to Flekkefjord
Flekkefjord
is a town and municipality in the county of Vest-Agder, Norway.The town of Flekkefjord was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . The rural municipalities of Bakke, Gyland, Hidra, and Nes were merged with Flekkefjord on 1 January 1965.Flekkefjord is the westernmost town of the...
as the Flekkefjord Line
Flekkefjord Line
The Flekkefjord Line is a abandoned branch line to the Sørland Line. It ran between Sira and Flekkefjord in Vest-Agder, Norway. The only current activity on the line is tourist draisines. The station buildings along the line were designed by the architect Paul Armin Due—these have all been...
in 1904. The Jæren Line's only branch, the Ålgård Line from Ganddal
Ganddal
Ganddal is a borough of the city of Sandnes, Norway. It has a population of 6,235.It has one of the city's largest industrial areas and the Jæren Line railroad runs through the area, which is served by the commuter and goods station, Ganddal Station. This will be Norway's second largest and serve...
to Ålgård
Ålgård
Ålgård is an area functioning as the administrative centre for the Gjesdal municipality in Rogaland, Norway, in the Jæren region. It is 10 km southeast of Sandnes...
, opened in 1924. In 1944, the Sørland Line was extended to Sira
Sira, Norway
Sira is a village located within the municipality of Flekkefjord in south-western Norway. The village is located at the border of the counties Vest-Agder and Rogaland, along European route E39 and the railway Sørlandsbanen. The village is served by Sira Station.Sira takes its name from the Sira...
on the Flekkefjord Line, and the Jæren Line was integrated in the main railway network. Because of this, the line was converted to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
.
Route
The Jæren Line is officially part of the Sørland Line, and consists of the 74.71 kilometres (46.4 mi) between Stavanger and Egersund. The 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) long section from Stavanger to Sandnes is double track, with five intermediate stations: ParadisParadis Station
Paradis Station is a railway station located at Paradis in Stavanger, Norway. Located from Stavanger Station, it is served by the Stavanger Commuter Rail operated by the Norwegian State Railways by up to four hourly trains in each direction. The station is located along the double track section...
, Mariero
Mariero Station
Mariero Station is a railway station located at Mariero in Stavanger, Norway. Located from Stavanger Station, it is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail operated by the Norwegian State Railways by up to four hourly trains in each direction. The station is located along the double track section of...
, Jåttåvågen
Jåttåvågen Station
Jåttåvågen Station is a railway station located at Jåtten in Stavanger, Norway. Located from Stavanger Station, it is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail operated by the Norwegian State Railways by up to four hourly trains in each direction. The station is located along the double track section of...
, Gausel
Gausel Station
Gausel Station is a railway station located at Gausel in Stavanger, Norway. Located from Stavanger Station, it is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail operated by the Norwegian State Railways by up to four hourly trains in each direction. The station is located along the double track section of the...
and Sandnes Sentrum. Though Sandnes, the line runs on an elevated section. Ganddal Freight Terminal is located close to Ganddal Station and is the only freight terminal in Jæren. It has an annual capacity for 80,000 containers and can handle 600 metres (1,968.5 ft) long trains. The line continues through the municipalities of Klepp
Klepp
Klepp is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The parish of Klep was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 ....
, Time
Time, Norway
Time is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The administrative centre of Time is the town of Bryne.-Name:...
, Hå
Hå
Hå is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. Hå is the southernmost municipality in the district Jæren.The parish of Haa was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . It was divided into Nærbø and Varhaug in 1894. The municipality of Hå was created after the merger of Nærbø, Varhaug,...
and Eigersund
Eigersund
Eigersund is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. Egersund landdisstrikt was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 . Augne was separated from Eigersund in 1839. Helleland and the town of Egersund were merged with Eigersund on 1 January 1965.-Location:Eigersund extends from the...
.
History
During the 19th century, transport along the Jæren coast was dominated by ship. Some simple roads had been built, but these were insufficient for quick and efficient transport. In the mid-19th century, the roads were improved, and ideas were launched to start a traction engineTraction engine
A traction engine is a self-propelled steam engine used to move heavy loads on roads, plough ground or to provide power at a chosen location. The name derives from the Latin tractus, meaning 'drawn', since the prime function of any traction engine is to draw a load behind it...
service along the coast. At a meeting at the sheriff's office in Klepp in 1866, Forest Manager Andreas Tanberg Gløersen launched the first idea to build a railway to connect Stavanger and Egersund. Gløersen had been to the Netherlands and both observed and ridden on a train. Later the same year, a meeting was held with representatives from the municipalities of Hå, Klepp and Time.
The meeting concluded that a railway should be built, and the responsibility for the preparatory work was given to County Governor Vilhelm Ludvig Herman von Munthe af Morgenstierne
Vilhelm Ludvig Herman von Munthe af Morgenstierne
Vilhelm Ludvig Herman von Munthe af Morgenstierne was a Norwegian politician, part of an old noble family.He was born in Christiania as the son of Bredo Henrik von Munthe af Morgenstierne and his wife Cathrine Elisabeth Fries. His brother Christian Fredrik Jacob was a jurist as well as chief of...
. He started by conducting traffic counting at throughout the district. This resulted in an estimate for a revenue of NOK 215,000 and a cost of NOK 153,000 per year. Originally the proposal was to connect the various villages in Jæren together. But during planning, it became clear from national authorities that the line would be part of a national railway that would connect Rogaland to Eastern Norway, giving the line a straighter profile and running via fewer communities.
The proposal was sent to the Ministry of the Interior, who recommended the line to the Parliament of Norway. The plans were presented to parliament on 6 May 1874, and passed in June. During the celebrations in Stavanger that evening, a gunner lost his hand following the explosion of a cannon. The line opened on 27 February 1878.
On 5 February 1875, a railway committee of the parliament published a report recommending that there be built four national railways to connect western and central Norway to eastern Norway. The Sørland Line was part of this plan, and was scheduled to be built between 1876 and 1888. The line was proposed to be built via the Vestfold Line to Skien
Skien
' is a city and municipality in Telemark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Grenland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Skien. Skien is also the administrative centre of Telemark county....
and onwards along the south coast before connecting with the Jæren Line at Egersund. However, Norway was hit by the Depression of 1882–85
Depression of 1882–85
The Depression of 1882–85 or Recession of 1882–85 was a recession in the United States that lasted from March 1882 to May 1885, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research. At 38 months in length this is the third-longest recession in the NBER's chronology of business cycles from 1854 to...
, which reduced railway construction to a minimum. In addition, the choice of route through Agder
Agder
Agder is a historical district of Norway in the southernmost region of Norway, corresponding to the two counties Vest-Agder and Aust-Agder. Today, the term Sørlandet is more commonly used.-Name:...
was disputed: either the populated coast, or in the sparsely populated inland. This issue kept the line at bay, and not until 1908 was agreement about the inland route chosen.
In 1894, the Railway Committee recommended parliament to prioritize three new lines, the Bergen Line, the Rauma Line and the Gjøvik Line. However, this met protests from representatives from Agder, and it became clear that there would not be a majority to build the Bergen Line unless part of the Sørland Line was built. Jørgen Løvland
Jørgen Løvland
Jørgen Gunnarsson Løvland was a Norwegian politician and Prime Minister. He was Minister of Labour 1898-1899, 1900-1902 and 1902-1903, member of the Council of State Division in Stockholm 1899-1900, Prime Minister in Stockholm in 1905, Minister of Foreign Affairs 1905 and 1905-1907, Prime Minister...
proposed a compromise in which the Flekkefjord Line be built from Egersund to Flekkefjord, as the first part of the Sørland Line, as well as the Treungen Line. The Flekkefjord Line opened on 31 October 1904.
The Ålgård Line was originally launched as an alternative route for the Sørland Line. In 1910, a committee was appointed that conducted preliminary planning of the line. Although NSB's board supported the line, construction was placed on hold. In 1919, local politicians proposed that the line be built administratively as part of the Jæren Line, but this was rejected by the government. Instead, the ministry wanted to again consider the Ålgård Line as part of the Sørland Line, and proposed that the Ålgård Line be built with standard gauge—which would be used for the Sørland Line—instead of the narrow gauge used by the Jæren Line. However, there would be no need for standard gauge until the Sørland Line was extended to Rogaland, so the line was planned to be built with narrow gauge track, but all other installations would be prepared for standard gauge. The first train to operate on the line went from Stavanger on 20 December 1924, and the Ålgård Line became the last state-owned railway in Norway to be opened with narrow gauge.
The Sørland Line was being built in standard gauge, and when the line was to connect to the Flekkefjord Line at Moi Station
Moi Station
Moi Station is a railway station located at the village of Moi in Lund, Norway on the railway Sørlandsbanen. The station is served by regional trains operated by Norges Statsbaner to Stavanger and Kristiansand.-History:...
, the Jæren Line would have to be rebuilt to standard gauge to avoid a break-of-gauge
Break-of-gauge
With railways, a break-of-gauge occurs where a line of one gauge meets a line of a different gauge. Trains and rolling stock cannot run through without some form of conversion between gauges, and freight and passengers must otherwise be transloaded...
. Preliminary work to ease the conversion was done during the 1920s. The conversion itself took only two days, during which the line was closed. On 29 April 1944, a test train was run from Sira
Sira, Norway
Sira is a village located within the municipality of Flekkefjord in south-western Norway. The village is located at the border of the counties Vest-Agder and Rogaland, along European route E39 and the railway Sørlandsbanen. The village is served by Sira Station.Sira takes its name from the Sira...
to Stavanger. The upgrade was officially opened on 1 May, after which the Jæren Line was connected to Oslo, and considered part of the Sørland Line. When the Jæren Line was built, the station in Egersund was located in the city center. With the opening of the Sørland Line, the station was moved 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) north of the city center.
Sandnes
Sandnes
is a city and municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren.-History:Sandnes was separated from Høyland as a municipality of its own in 1860, and gained city status the same year...
became the third-largest intermediate stop on the Sørland Line, after Drammen Station
Drammen Station
Drammen is a railway station located in downtown Drammen in Buskerud, Norway. The station is the terminus of both the Randsfjord Line, the Drammen Line and the Vestfold Line...
and Kristiansand Station
Kristiansand Station
Kristiansand Station is a railway station located in downtown Kristiansand in Vest-Agder, Norway on the Sørland Line. The station is served by regional trains to Oslo and Stavanger...
. To develop a better solution for serving Sandnes, the track through the city center was rebuilt to an elevated railway
Elevated railway
An elevated railway is a form of rapid transit railway with the tracks built above street level on some form of viaduct or other steel or concrete structure. The railway concerned may be constructed according to the standard gauge, narrow gauge, light rail, monorail or suspension railway system...
. Given the unofficial name The High Line , the new Sandnes Station
Sandnes Station
Sandnes Sentrum Station is a railway station located in downtown Sandnes in Rogaland, Norway. The station is served by regional trains to Kristiansand and the Jæren Commuter Rail. The station is south of Stavanger Station.-History:...
was located further south of the center of Sandnes, at Skeiene. The new station and the elevated section opened on 1 October 1955.
The commuter rail system was introduced from 1 January 1992, after an agreement between NSB, Rogaland County Municipality
Rogaland county municipality
Rogaland County Municipality is the regional governing administration of Rogaland, Norway. The main responsibilities of the county municipality includes the running of 29 upper secondary schools. It administrates the county roadways, public transport, dental care, culture and cultural heritage...
and the six municipalities along the line. NSB introduced new Class 69 multiple units, while the county municipality introduced a fare coordination with the corresponding bus services. The increase in service involved 15 departures per direction per day, and the travel time from Stavanger to Egersund was reduced from 80 to 55 minutes. In addition, NSB started with a half-hour headway
Headway
Headway is a measurement of the distance/time between vehicles in a transit system. The precise definition varies depending on the application, but it is most commonly measured as the distance from the tip of one vehicle to the tip of the next one behind it, expressed as the time it will take for...
between Stavanger and Sandnes. A new station, Sandnes Sentrum, was opened in the city center of Sandnes at the time the new service started. NSB stated that the goal was to increase the daily ridership from 2,900 to 5,000 passengers by 1994. The stations were also upgraded, including new sheds. The Scanet
Scanet
Scanet is a defunct, analog train radio system used by the Norwegian State Railways and later the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The system was developed by Ascom Radiocom and was installed on the primary Norwegian railways between 1993 and 1996...
train radio system was installed between 1993 and 1996.
The service was a success, and NSB received a 112% increase in ridership the first year. In 1993, NSB won Statens Byggeskikkpris, among other things for the new sheds on the Jæren Line. By 1995, ridership was up 150% from before the commuter rail started. In 1997, NSB announced that they would order 36 new electric multiple units, which would among other things replace the aging trains on the Jæren Commuter Rail. The new Class 72 trains were put into service on 8 August 2002, several years after schedule. In April 2004, the rail administration opened Jåttå Station
Jåttå Station
Jåttå Station is a railway station located at Jåttå in Stavanger, Norway. The station is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail between Stavanger and Egersund...
, which was located close to Viking Stadion
Viking Stadion
Viking Stadion is a football stadium, built at Jåttåvågen, in Stavanger, Norway. It was inaugurated in May 2004 and cost 160 million NOK to build . 50 million NOK, plus the lot it was built on, was a gift from the municipality. It replaced Stavanger Stadion as the home stadium for Viking F.K....
, the new home ground of Tippeligaen
Tippeligaen
Tippeligaen is a Norwegian professional league for association football clubs. At the top of the Norwegian football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. The league is also unofficially known under its neutral name Eliteserien , although the name has never been official...
side Viking FK.
Construction of a new freight terminal at Ganddal started in 2005, was completed in 2007 and opened on 21 January 2008. The terminal cost NOK 500 million and replaced the terminal at Stavanger Station. Both the terminal and the double track were to use the newly developed signaling system Merkur, but the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate
Norwegian Railway Inspectorate
The Norwegian Railway Inspectorate is a Norwegian government agency responsible for control and supervision of rail transport in Norway, including railways, tramways, rapid transits, heritage railways and side tracks....
would not give permission for the system to be installed. Because of this, the signaling system at the terminal is operated manually and therefore cannot be used with full capacity.
To further increase capacity and regularity, the Norwegian National Rail Administration decided to rebuild the section from Stavanger to Sandnes to double track. The upgrade involved closing Hillevåg Station, and building three new stations: Paradis, Jåttåvågen and Gausel. Construction was started in 2006 and estimated to cost 2.2 billion Norwegian krone
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
. From April to November 2009, the section from Ganddal to Stavanger was closed while the last part of the upgrade was completed. The new line was opened on 16 November 2009 and from 14 December, the 15-minute headway was introduced between Stavanger and Sandnes.
Service
The Jæren Commuter RailJæren Commuter Rail
The Jæren Commuter Rail is a commuter train service operated along the western-most part of the Sørland Line in Jæren, Norway. It is operated by the Norwegian State Railways with nine Class 72 electric multiple units. The service acts as a commuter rail connecting Stavanger to its suburbs,...
is a local services operated by NSB between Stavanger and Egersund. The service between Stavanger and Sandnes operate with a fixed schedule every 15 minutes. Of the trains to Sandnes, half continue onwards to Nærbø, giving a 30 minute headway. One train per hour operate all the way to Egersund. On weekends and late evenings, there is a reduced service. Travel time from Stavanger to Sandnes is 19 minutes, from Stavanger to Nærbø is 37 minutes, and from Stavanger to Egersund is 1 hour and 7 minutes. The operating deficits are covered through subsidies by the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications
The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Transportation and Communications is a Norwegian ministry established in 1946, and is responsible for transportation and communication infrastructure in Norway. It is led by Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa...
. NSB uses four-car NSB Class 72
NSB Class 72
NSB Class 72 is a class of 36 electric multiple units built by AnsaldoBreda for the Norwegian State Railways. Delivered between 2002 and 2005, the four-car units operate on the Oslo Commuter Rail and the Jæren Commuter Rail. The trains have a capacity of 310 passengers and the motors allow a...
electric multiple units on the service.
NSB also operates up to eight daily intercity services to Kristiansand Station
Kristiansand Station
Kristiansand Station is a railway station located in downtown Kristiansand in Vest-Agder, Norway on the Sørland Line. The station is served by regional trains to Oslo and Stavanger...
. Up to five of these services continue onwards to Oslo Central Station. Travel time from Stavanger to Kristiansand is 3 hours, while travel time all the way to Oslo is seven and a half hours. One of the services to Oslo is a night train
NSB Night Train
NSB Night Train is a night sleeping car service provided by the Norwegian State Railways on four routes; Oslo - Bergen , Oslo - Stavanger , Oslo - Trondheim and Trondheim - Bodø .The service is provided using El 18 locomotives with WLAB2 and B7 cars on the electrified lines in Southern Norway,...
. Intercity trains along the Jæren Line only call at Egersund, Bryne, Sandnes Sentrum and Stavanger, with travel time from Stavanger to Egersund being slightly less than an hour. CargoNet
CargoNet
CargoNet AS is the primary operator of freight trains on the Norwegian railway system. It was formed as NSB Gods after NSB fissioned into a passenger and a freight company. NSB Gods changed its name to CargoNet at the beginning of 2002. It is owned by NSB and the Swedish freight company Green Cargo...
operates up to five container freight trains from Oslo per day and one from Drammen per day to Ganddal Freight Terminal.
Future
The National Rail Administration has developed a plan for possible expansion of the commuter rail. The main possibilities have been discussed: rebuilding the section from Sandnes to Egersund to double track, taking back into use the Ålgård Line, which branches off at Ganddal, and building a new branch from south of Gausel to Stavanger Airport, Sola. An alternative to several of the options is a light rail, which may or may not be built as a tram-trainTram-train
A tram-train is a light-rail public transport system where trams run both on an urban tramway network and on main-line railways to combine the tram's flexibility and availability and the train's greater speed...
, which would use parts of the existing double track between Stavanger and Sandnes.
The Ålgård Line is a 12.24 kilometres (7.6 mi) long railway which branches from the Sørland Line at Ganddal. It runs via Foss-Eikeland
Foss-Eikeland
Foss-Eikeland is a village in Ganddal, Sandnes, Norway. The Ålgård Line previously had a station there....
and Figgjo
Figgjo
Figgjo is a borough of the city of Sandnes, Norway. It has a population of 1,805.By Statistics Norway it is also considered to be an urban area separate from Sandnes city, but it has grown together with Ålgård in the neighboring municipality Gjesdal. Figgjo and Ålgård have a combined population of...
to Ålgård
Ålgård
Ålgård is an area functioning as the administrative centre for the Gjesdal municipality in Rogaland, Norway, in the Jæren region. It is 10 km southeast of Sandnes...
, and was opened on 20 December 1924. Passenger services were terminated on on 1 November 1955, making it the line with the most frequent passenger traffic in Norway to be closed. Freight trains operated until the 1988. The first 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) are used for freight trains to access a cement factory. The line has officially been closed, but has not been abandoned. The National Rail Administration retains ownership and can in the future renovate the line for operation. The annual traffic potential for the Ålgård Line is 600,000 passengers. Plans call for stations at Vagle, Figgjo, Kongeparken
Kongeparken
Kongeparken is an amusement park in the village Ålgård, near Stavanger, Norway. Kongeparken is the biggest amusement park in the southwest of Norway and Rogaland's biggest tourist attraction...
and Ålgård. It is possible to operate the trains that currently terminate at Sandnes to Ålgård without new infrastructure investments to the Sørland Line. However, the line would need a full upgrade, including new tracks, electric system and signaling. Ålgård is also a good location for a park and ride
Park and ride
Park and ride facilities are car parks with connections to public transport that allow commuters and other people wishing to travel into city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, rail system , or carpool for the rest of their trip...
for European Route E39
European route E39
E 39 is the designation of a 1330 km long north-south road in Norway and Denmark, running from Klett just south of Trondheim to Aalborg, via Orkanger, Vinjeøra, Halsa ... Straumsnes, Krifast, Batnfjordsøra, Molde ... Vestnes, Skodje, Ålesund ... Volda ... Nordfjordeid ... Sandane, Førde,...
.
A branch to Sola has been considered to allow the trains to operate to Sola
Sola
Sola is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is part of the region of Jæren. The old municipality of Håland was divided into Sola and Madla in 1930....
and the airport. The line would branch from the Sørland Line south of Gausel, and be built so trains from the branch could run both northwards and southwards. Proposed stations include the airport, Solakrossen
Solakrossen
Solakrossen is the administrative center of Sola, Norway....
, Forus
Forus
Forus is an industrial district in the borough Hinna in Stavanger, Norway. It borders to the Gandsfjord and stretches south and west to the municipalities Sandnes and Sola...
West, Statoil
Statoil
Statoil ASA is a Norwegian petroleum company established in 1972. It merged with Norsk Hydro in 2007 and was known as StatoilHydro until 2009, when the name was changed back to Statoil ASA. The brand Statoil was retained as a chain of fuel stations owned by StatoilHydro...
's head office and possibly the shopping center Kvadrat. This would give a travel time of 17 minutes from the airport to the city center, and 10 minutes from the airport to Sandnes. This route has, however, also been proposed as part of the light rail system. This will give about 2.5 million annual passengers.
Plans have been made that would either double or triple the frequency on all the services on the existing commuter rail network. However, increased frequency south of Sandnes will require double track. Should the frequency be doubled, double track would have to be built to where the current service to Nærbo terminates. Plans call for these trains to possibly be extended to either Varhaug or Vigrestad. Should the frequency be tripled, double track would be needed all the way to Egersund. Parts of the Jæren Line is straight enough to permit speeds between 200 kilometre per hour. However, several shorter parts need to be rebuilt to allow this, particularly between Egersund and Ogna, and from Bryne to Ganddal. In particular, the section from Ogna to Egersund would probably have to follow an all-new route, should it be rebuilt to double track. The effect of higher maximum speeds is greatest for intercity trains, as the commuter trains have so frequent stops they have little to gain from the increased speeds.
Egersund Station has been proposed moved back to its old location for the commuter rail, giving Egersund two stations: one for commuter trains and one for regional trains. The right-of-way still exists for this route, making construction easy. A new Sørland Line has also been proposed, which would run south instead of north from Egersund. This would mean that a city center location for Egersund Station would be better for intercity trains as well.
Rogaland County Municipality is in the planning process of building a light rail in Greater Stavanger. The initial plans call for a Y-shaped service which could be operational by 2018, with possibilities for further expansion. As of 2010, the plans call for a 16.2 kilometres (10.1 mi) line from Stavanger to Sandnes, and a 7.7 or branch to the airport. The travel time from Sandnes to Stavanger would be 29 minutes, and is therefore a supplement to the commuter rail. The light rail would have interchange with the Jæren Line at Stavanger, Paradis, Jåttåvågen, Gausel and Sandnes Sentrum. Several new branches of the light rail have been proposed for later construction.