Meråkerbanen
Encyclopedia
The Meråker Line is a railway line
which runs from Hell, outside Stjørdal
, through the municipalities of Stjørdal
and Meråker
in Nord-Trøndelag
county, Norway
, to the village of Storlien
in Sweden
. On the Swedish side, it continues as the Central Line to the city of Sundsvall
. The line originally went from Trondheim Central Station
to Storlien, but the owner, the Norwegian National Rail Administration, has since re-categorized the line from Trondheim to Hell
as part of the Nordland Line, thus cutting the Meråker Line's distance from 106 to 70 km (65.9 to 43.5 mi).
Planning of the line started in 1870, and the route was preferred over a railway via Verdal
and via Røros
. The first section was finished in 1879, when the first train ran. The line was officially opened by King Oscar II
on 22 July 1882. Construction cost , and the line gave an economic boost to the communities along the valley. The line has been upgraded several times to increase the axle load. During World War II
, the line was the scene of both the Hommelvik train disaster
and the Meråker train disaster
. Steam trains were in use until 1971, following the introduction of diesel locomotive
s in 1961. While the Swedish section of the line is electrified
, the Norwegian section is not, though proposals for electrification have existed since the 1940s.
The line is now served by the regional train Mittnabotåget
, operated by the Norwegian State Railways, which runs trains all the way to Östersund
, from Trondheim, using Class 92 diesel multiple units. There are two services in each direction each day. There are also freight trains operated by CargoNet
. Most of the cargo is lumber bound for the lumber mill Norske Skog Skogn
and the port at Hommelvik
. Previously, Elkem Meraker
used the line to haul carbide
, and later microsilica
, to the port at Muruvik
. Six stations remain in use, while seven have been closed.
and Verdal valleys had been important for trade between Trøndelag
and Jämtland
. In particular, Levanger
had grown into an important trading town for Jämtland farmers, who would travel across the Verdal Mountains. The first public discussion of a railway was launched in Levanger in 1858; the initiative was pushed by Jämtland's governor Thome, who wanted a line via Verdal to Levanger. At the time, the Trondhjem–Støren Line was about to be built, and the commercial interests in Trondheim were more concerned about getting a connection southwards along what would become the Røros Line to Oslo. In 1869, a meeting held in Sundsvall, Sweden, had proposed three routes for the line: via Verdal, via Meråker or as a branch at Røros.
During the 1850s, a road had been built up the Stjørdal Valley, and at Stjørdalshalsen
it connected to a steam ship route to Trondheim. The need for a railway was driven by the export needs of Jämtland, which needed an ice-free port for export of timber and lumber. Trade from Norway to Sweden was limited, due to lack of good infrastructure, but traders in Norway soon realized that the railway would allow export of fish to Sweden.
In 1870, a committee was created to consider the railway, and was followed by on-site investigations to determine route choice. Similar investigations were carried out in Sweden. For the Norwegian side, costs were estimated to be at Until 1875, Norway used the specidaler
. There are four Norwegian krone
(NOK) to one specidaler. for the Meråker route. Surveys along the Verdal route deemed the route unsuitable. This presumed a narrow gauge (1067 millimetres (42 in)) railway, common in Norway at the time. Operating profits were estimated to give a 4.5% return on capital. Shares in the railway company were offered for sale in 1871; the largest purchaser was the City of Trondheim, who bought shares for NOK 1.2 million. In Trondheim alone, private investors bought an additional NOK 3.6 million in shares.
In the spring of 1871, the line was considered by the Standing Committee for Railways in the Parliament of Norway. The proposition was voted down at 64 votes to 42. After a local railway committee was established, parliament passed legislation to build the line on 2 May 1872. The state would receive shares in the company equal to their monetary contribution. A suggestion from Johan Sverdrup
that required the company to also borrow NOK 1.4 million was voted down 58 votes to 52. In Sweden, the work was meeting resistance, and many Trondheim businesspeople chose to purchase shares in the Swedish part of the line to secure the financing of the Swedish part. In 1873, the Parliament of Sweden
voted to build a narrow gauge railway from Torpshammar
to the Norwegian border; there was already a railway line from Torpshammar to Sundsvall
, the Sundsvall–Torpshammars Railway.
The Norwegian Parliament gave NOK 400,000 in support in 1873, and doubled it the following year. By then, the Swedish authorities had decided that all railways should be built in standard gauge
, and the Norwegian Parliament chose to change their configuration to the same gauge in 1874, increasing estimated costs from NOK 4.7 to 8.9 million. This was a similar arrangement to what would happen with the two international lines in Eastern Norway, where the Kongsvinger and Østfold Lines were also built with standard gauge. Despite intense lobbying from representatives from Innherred, the Verdal alternative was finally discarded when parliament gave NOK 3 million to the Meråker Line.
created a barrier just north of Hell
, and it would be cheaper to make the line go on the south shore of the river down to Hegra
. However, the major population center was located at Stjørdalshalsen, on the north shore of the river. Locally, there were many protests against the line bypassing such a large town, but the cost of the bridge made parliament choose the southern alternative. This gave residents in Stjørdal a considerably longer route to the train, since they had to cross the river to get access to the railway. This decreased the railway's ability to compete with the steam ships and thus the overall profitability of the line. In 1902, just twenty years later, the bridge would be built anyway as part of the Hell–Sunnan Line.
In Trondheim, the existing railway station
for the Trondhjem–Støren Line was built as a cul-de-sac
station at Kalvskinnet
. It was suggested that the railway station be located at Brattøra
, a man-made peninsula that would be located just north of the city center. This would allow the station to be located next to the port. With the expansion of the southbound Støren Line over the mountains to Oslo, the Røros Line, it was decided to connect both lines to the same station. The cost of the new station
was NOK 1.4 million.
The first blasting was performed during a ceremony in 1875, but the real work did not start until 1876. Construction of the last section into Trondheim, along with the station, did not start until 1878, due to disagreements about the plans. By 1878, tracks were laid from Leangen
to the border between Nedre Stjørdal
and Øvre Stjørdal
(54 km (33.6 mi)). On 27 August 1879, the first train ran from Rotvoll Station
, just outside Trondheim, to the national border. Before the line was finished in Sweden, the Norwegian State Railways operated a train once per week from 11 February 1880. Full service was introduced on 17 October 1881, though the line was not yet completed to Östersund
; nor did Trondheim Station open until 1882.
The work paid well, and attracted many navvies
to the area. Initial wages were NOK 3.20 per day, though this later was reduced. 2,500 men were employed; despite this there were more seekers than jobs, and the requirement was that a man could carry a railway track. Land owners were compensated NOK 50–200 per hectare
(2.5 acres) for cultivated land, and NOK 10 per hectare for forest. Many local farmers made good money offering transport of cargo for the construction, as well as renting out annexes for navvies; others made money as traders. As with all such construction areas, many legal and illegal pubs and brothels were established. After construction was completed, some moved on, while others settled in the area; many of these received jobs with the railway company.
The official opening was on 22 July 1882. The line was opened by King Oscar II
of Sweden and Norway. This was at the height of the debate on parliamentarianism
and the king's right to veto the Norwegian Parliament, and the king used the opening ceremonies and speeches at each station to encourage people to support union between Sweden and Norway
, and pointed out how the railway would better connect the brother nations. In contrast, in Hegra no-one from the municipal council chose to attend the opening ceremony, and no-one from Nedre Stjørdal attended the opening at Hell either.
to Storlien. No. 3–6 were Class 9 locomotives that would do the main haulage from Gudå
into Trondheim. In 1883, NSB's other two Class 14 locomotives were transferred from the Smaalenene Line. The initial fleet consisted of 24 passenger and nine breaking cars, all from Skabo
. The line featured the first bogie
cars in the country, with an single entrance at the end of each car, instead of individual doors for each compartment. There were also bought 37 closed freight car
s, 40 lumber cars
, 20 boxcar
s, 100 flatcar
s and three milk cars. At first all trains were mixed freight and passenger.
In addition to the trains heading for Sweden, there was also a commuter train that ran, first from Hommelvik
, then from Hegra
, into Trondheim in the morning, and returning after work in the evening. Since there was no depot at Hegra, the locomotive had to return without cars to Hommelvik for the nightly overhaul. The 854 km (530.7 mi) route from Trondheim to Stockholm initially took 57 hours 48 minutes. By 1904, this was reduced to 26 hours, mostly due to reducing the length of the layover between trains.
On 24 June 1884, the Røros Line was connected to the Brattøra Station, and a common maintenance depot was introduced for both railways. The Meråker Line's locomotives were then renumbered, starting at 51, to keep them distinguished from the Røros Line's. From the same year, the Meråker Line was assigned two Class 8 locomotives. From 1896, Class 15 locomotives were used, and two years later supplemented by the Class 17.
By 1900, the revenue of the line was at NOK 533,306 per year, most of which was from the freight traffic. This gave a return of capital of 1–2%. Freight traffic increased about twice as fast as passenger traffic, and in 1904 a new daily train was put into service to Storlien. In 1902, the first section of the Hell–Sunnan Line opened to Stjørdalshalsen. It was gradually expanded to Verdal and Sunnan
. At first the trains along the Hell–Sunnan Line were decoupled at Hell Station
, but from 1909 on direct trains to Trondheim started operating.
Storlien
, just on the Swedish side of the national border, grew up as a resort, with the first hotel established just after the railway arrived. Trade between the two countries increased, as Jämtland had easy access to the Trøndelag market. However, the freight rates were so high that it was cheaper to send some products to Trøndelag from the Swedish east coast by ship around Scania
.
Meråker saw in industrial boom due to the railway. There was already a copper mine and smelters at Kopperå
, and they saw the railway as a possibility to change from locally produced charcoal
to imported coke
. In 1887, a pulp mill
was opened, but it burned down in 1912. The most important industry was the carbide
factory that opened in Kopperå in 1900—Meraker Smelteverk
. Though located close to the hydroelectricity
sources in Meråker, the import and export of raw and finished materials would not have been possible without the railway. A port for the plant was built at Muruvik
in 1918.
Lumber export was one of the main driving forces for building railways at the time, and the Meråker Line was no exception. In both Stjørdalen and the vast areas of Jämtland and Northern Sweden are huge amounts of woodlands. The Meråker Line ran straight through this area, and was seen as a new possibility to export lumber to the continent, where there was high demand for it. Before the railway was built, there was a small sawmill in Hommelvik
. In 1881, the Scotsman Lewis Miller bought huge areas of woods in Jämtland, as well as nine sawmills in Sweden. All the produce from these were then sent to Hommelvik for processing and shipment. At the most he employed 100 men, and exported up to 183000000 m³ (6,462,583,916.9 cu ft) of lumber each year. Also located at Hommelvik were two wharfs owned by NSB, and one of the major imports was coal for the Swedish State Railways
.
World War I
proved to be a boom for the Meråker Line. The line suddenly became a transit corridor for shipments from Russia, as well as from Sweden, to the ports in Trondheim and Hommelvik. To cope with the increased traffic, NSB had to both rent equipment from Sweden and acquire ten new Class 21
and Class 35 locomotives between 1913 and 1918. Four of these were from other lines, while the others were new. With the new locomotives, the dimensioned axle weight needed to be upgraded to 14 tonne, which mostly involved improving the bridges. The bridge at Funna was dismounted and sold to be used on the Gråkallen Line of the Trondheim Tramway
. Class 35 was used on the Gudå–Storlien section, and replaced the aging Class 14. They remained in service until 1929, when they were transferred to the Ofoten Line.
From 1927, the first pure through-passenger trains started operating in the summer, towards Sweden in the morning and back during the evening. From 1933 it operated all year. Through the 1920s and 1930s, many shorter distances received extra trains, and passenger and freight trains were gradually separated into separate trains. The traffic through Trondheim–Hell increased; commuter trains terminated at several different stations. From 1930, multiple unit
s were also put into use on the line.
from 9 April 1940, traffic continued in ordinary fashion until 14 April, when a telephone message was misunderstood, and Norwegian military forces shot at a train they thought had Germans on board. After this, traffic on the line was halted. On the Swedish side of the border, 1 to 2 km (0.621372736649807 to 1.2 ) of track was broken to hinder the Germans from using the line to access Sweden. Local traffic to Kopperå
started again on 25 April. On 17 May, a multiple unit
ran to Storlien with a general to discuss reopening the line. The answer was negative, but on 24 May, an agreement was struck. At the same time, military trains were put into use, from Snåsa
and Steinkjer
to Storlien, and onwards to Narvik
. After transport on the Ofot Line to Narvik (via Sweden) was officially reopened on 2 August, there were regular trains from Trondheim via the Meråker Line to Narvik, with up to three trains a day.
On 19 November 1940, a train with workers from Trondheim to the airport collided with the local train from Kopperå just east of Hommelvik Station
. The Hommelvik train disaster
killed 22 people. The trains were supposed to have passed at Homnmelvik Station, but the engineer thought he had seen the other train, and had left the station. The accident occurred at 08:03, and was caused by there being virtually no light to see with, since all outdoor sources of light were covered. On 23 January 1941, a coke and coal train from Sweden lost its braking between the border and Kopperå. The six back cars plus the caboose derailed just west of Kopperå Station
, while the locomotive and 17 other trains continued their wild flight. The train derailed at Meråker Station
, and the Meråker train disaster
killed both the engineer and the stoker.
The railway and its personnel were an active part of the Norwegian resistance movement
during the war. In particular, Swedish newspapers and literature were smuggled into the country, primarily by stokers, who hid the material in the coal. Also, people who were not able to flee to Sweden via the mountains, or needed to get out in a hurry, were sometimes smuggled on board the trains, primarily on German trains. Illegal documents and microfilms were also smuggled out. For German transport trains, track-side employees tried to create "delays".
diesel locomotives were put into service. The last steam engine was taken out of service in 1971. Hegra
, Sona
and Flornes Station
s were made unmanned in 1970. By 1980, cargo volumes were up to the level seen during World War I. The Norwegian National Rail Administration, who owns the railway, has changed the definition of the railway lines so that the Nordland Line now runs from Trondheim via Hell to Bodø, while the Meråker Line branches off from the Nordland Line at Hell.
In the late 1950s, the Swedish Air Force
built a NOK 32 million storage area for aviation fuel
at Muruvik
. The terminal would be a reserve in case of an attack on Sweden, and the Meråker Line was to be used to transport the fuel into Sweden. The depot was sold in 1988 to Petrofina
, following the Royal Norwegian Air Force
's quest to build a pipeline to the NATO-base at Trondheim Airport, Værnes
.
The establishment of the paper mill Norske Skog Skogn
in 1969 created a new freight train route between Jämtland and Skogn
. In 2005, the line had 400000 tonne of cargo, of which half was for Norske Skog, and 130000 tonne was for Elkem Meraker, the smelter. After the latter closed the following year, freight amounts went down, but up to 100000 tonne may be recaptured from truck transport on European Route E14
for Norske Skog. In 2006, the line received a major overhaul for NOK 60 million. The maximum axle load was increased from 18 tonne to 22.5 tonne, equivalent to the standard on the Swedish side, and the maximum speed for freight trains increased from 50 to 80 km/h (31.1 to 49.7 mph) for freight trains, and from 100 to 130 km/h (62.1 to 80.8 mph) for passenger trains. By 2007, the line had carried 5300000 tonne of lumber to the mill.
A new tunnel is being built west of Hell, to be finished 2012. It is called Gevingåsen Tunnel
and will be 4.4 kilometres (2.7 mi) and will shorten the travel time by 5 minutes and allow a capacity increase.
Plans for electrification
of the line have existed since the 1940s. The Swedish side had already been electrified, and at the time Norway was performing a massive electrification of the railway network, but other projects received higher priority. When the mass electrification was finished in 1970, all trackage north of Trondheim was allocated to diesel operations. The matter of electrification comes up regularly in public debate. Norges Statsbaner has stated that they will be retiring the current Class 92 trains around 2015, and that they hope that the Trøndelag Commuter Rail could be electrified at the same time. If new diesel stock is bought, it could be 2050 before electric operation on the dieselized sections is realized. An electrification of Trondheim–Steinkjer would probably include the Meråker Line as well.
is 1 hour 19 minutes, to Storlien 1 hour 44 minutes, and to Östersund 3 hours 56 minutes.
and transit containers
are the most common freight products on the Meråker Line. CargoNet
is the dominant transporter, using Di 8
and CD66
as haulage. In particular, timber is transported to the port at Hommelvik
and to the paper mill Norske Skog Skogn
. From 2006 to 2008, the timber trains were hauled by Ofotbanen.
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
which runs from Hell, outside Stjørdal
Stjørdal
is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stjørdal, also called Stjørdalshalsen...
, through the municipalities of Stjørdal
Stjørdal
is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Stjørdal, also called Stjørdalshalsen...
and Meråker
Meråker
Meråker is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Stjørdalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Midtbygda which is about west of Storlien in Sweden and east of Stjørdalshalsen in Stjørdal. Other villages in Meråker include Gudåa,...
in Nord-Trøndelag
Nord-Trøndelag
is a county constituting the northern part of Trøndelag in Norway. As of 2010, the county had 131,555 inhabitants, making it the country's fourth-least populated county. The largest municipalities are Stjørdal, Steinkjer—the county seat, Levanger, Namsos and Verdal, all with between 21,000 and...
county, 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...
, to the village of Storlien
Storlien
Storlien is a village and ski resort in the Åre municipality, in Jämtland, Sweden, a kilometre from the Swedish-Norwegian border.The village has only 78 permanent inhabitants. The work opportunities are based on tourism and shopping. Most tourists are Norwegians or Swedes. Shopping tourists arrive...
in Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. On the Swedish side, it continues as the Central Line to the city of Sundsvall
Sundsvall
-External links:* - Official site from Nordisk Familjebok - Sundsvalls tourist information bureau. - The alternative guide to Sundsvall. - Blog with photos from Sundsvall....
. The line originally went from Trondheim Central Station
Trondheim Central Station
Trondheim Central Station or Trondheim S is the main railway station serving the city of Trondheim, Norway. Located at Brattøra in the north part of the city center, it is the terminus of the Dovre Line, running southwards, and the Nordland Line, which runs north...
to Storlien, but the owner, the Norwegian National Rail Administration, has since re-categorized the line from Trondheim to Hell
Hell Station
Hell Station is a railway station located in the village of Hell in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located at the intersection of the Nordland Line and Meråker Line....
as part of the Nordland Line, thus cutting the Meråker Line's distance from 106 to 70 km (65.9 to 43.5 mi).
Planning of the line started in 1870, and the route was preferred over a railway via Verdal
Verdal
Verdal is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Verdalsøra...
and via Røros
Røros
is a town and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Gauldalen region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Røros. Other villages include Brekken, Glåmos, Feragen, Galåa, and Hitterdalen....
. The first section was finished in 1879, when the first train ran. The line was officially opened by King Oscar II
Oscar II of Sweden
Oscar II , baptised Oscar Fredrik was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death and King of Norway from 1872 until 1905. The third son of King Oscar I of Sweden and Josephine of Leuchtenberg, he was a descendant of Gustav I of Sweden through his mother.-Early life:At his birth in Stockholm, Oscar...
on 22 July 1882. Construction cost , and the line gave an economic boost to the communities along the valley. The line has been upgraded several times to increase the axle load. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the line was the scene of both the Hommelvik train disaster
Hommelvik train disaster
The Hommelvik train disaster was a train collision at Hommelvik Station, on the Meråker Line in Norway.On 19 November 1940, a train with workers from Trondheim Central Station to Trondheim Airport, Værnes collided with the local train from Kopperå just east of Hommelvik Station. The Hommelvik train...
and the Meråker train disaster
Meråker train disaster
The Meråker train disaster occurred on 23 January 1941 at Meråker Station on the Meråker Line in Norway. A coke and coal train from Sweden lost its braking between the national border and Kopperå Station. The six back cars plus the caboose derailed just west of Kopperå, while the locomotive and 17...
. Steam trains were in use until 1971, following the introduction of diesel locomotive
Diesel locomotive
A diesel locomotive is a type of railroad locomotive in which the prime mover is a diesel engine, a reciprocating engine operating on the Diesel cycle as invented by Dr. Rudolf Diesel...
s in 1961. While the Swedish section of 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...
, the Norwegian section is not, though proposals for electrification have existed since the 1940s.
The line is now served by the regional train Mittnabotåget
Mittnabotåget
Mittnabotåget is a regional train service connecting Trondheim in Norway with Sundsvall in Sweden. It includes trains operated by Veolia Transport on the Mittlinjen between Sundsvall and Östersund in Sweden, and Norges Statsbaner’s cross-border Nabotåget services from Östersund on to Trondheim in...
, operated by the Norwegian State Railways, which runs trains all the way to Östersund
Östersund
Östersund is an urban area in Jämtland in the middle of Sweden. It is the seat of Östersund Municipality and the capital of Jämtland County. Östersund is located at the shores of Sweden's fifth largest lake, Storsjön, opposite the island Frösön, and is the only city in Jämtland. Östersund is the...
, from Trondheim, using Class 92 diesel multiple units. There are two services in each direction each day. There are also freight trains operated by 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...
. Most of the cargo is lumber bound for the lumber mill Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn is a paper mill located in Levanger in Norway. The mill was the first mill in the Norske Skog Corporation and opened in 1962. It has three paper machines and produces 600,000 tonnes of newsprint annually...
and the port at Hommelvik
Hommelvik
Hommelvik is a village and the administrative centre of the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located at the end of the Hommelvika, a bay off of the Trondheimsfjord. It is about southwest of Muruvika, about southeast of Smiskaret, about east of Vikhammer,...
. Previously, Elkem Meraker
Elkem Meraker
Elkem Meraker, formerly known as Meraker Smelteverk, was a microsilica plant located at Kopperå in Meråker, Norway. The plant was established in 1898 to manufacture carbide, put later rebuilt to manufacture microsilica. In 1981, it was sold from Union Carbide to Elkem. Products were transported...
used the line to haul carbide
Carbide
In chemistry, a carbide is a compound composed of carbon and a less electronegative element. Carbides can be generally classified by chemical bonding type as follows: salt-like, covalent compounds, interstitial compounds, and "intermediate" transition metal carbides...
, and later microsilica
Silica fume
Silica fume, also known as microsilica, is a fine-grain, thin, and very high surface area silica.It is sometimes confused with fumed silica and colloidal silica...
, to the port at Muruvik
Muruvik
Muruvika or Muruvik is a village in the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located near the end of the Stjørdalsfjorden, an arm of the Trondheimsfjord...
. Six stations remain in use, while seven have been closed.
Background
Since the Middle Ages, both the StjørdalenStjørdalen
Stjørdalen is a valley and a traditional district in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It makes up the southern part of the Inntrøndelag region....
and Verdal valleys had been important for trade between Trøndelag
Trøndelag
Trøndelag is the name of a geographical region in the central part of Norway, consisting of the two counties Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag. The region is, together with Møre og Romsdal, part of a larger...
and Jämtland
Jämtland
Jämtland or Jamtland is a historical province or landskap in the center of Sweden in northern Europe. It borders to Härjedalen and Medelpad in the south, Ångermanland in the east, Lapland in the north and Trøndelag and Norway in the west...
. In particular, Levanger
Levanger
Levanger is a town and municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherred region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Levanger...
had grown into an important trading town for Jämtland farmers, who would travel across the Verdal Mountains. The first public discussion of a railway was launched in Levanger in 1858; the initiative was pushed by Jämtland's governor Thome, who wanted a line via Verdal to Levanger. At the time, the Trondhjem–Støren Line was about to be built, and the commercial interests in Trondheim were more concerned about getting a connection southwards along what would become the Røros Line to Oslo. In 1869, a meeting held in Sundsvall, Sweden, had proposed three routes for the line: via Verdal, via Meråker or as a branch at Røros.
During the 1850s, a road had been built up the Stjørdal Valley, and at Stjørdalshalsen
Stjørdalshalsen
Stjørdalshalsen is a town and the administrative centre of the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located between the rivers Stjørdalselva and Gråelva, and their mouth into the Trondheimsfjord.The town has a population of 10,779. The population density of the town is...
it connected to a steam ship route to Trondheim. The need for a railway was driven by the export needs of Jämtland, which needed an ice-free port for export of timber and lumber. Trade from Norway to Sweden was limited, due to lack of good infrastructure, but traders in Norway soon realized that the railway would allow export of fish to Sweden.
Norwegian speciedaler
The speciedaler was the currency of Norway between 1816 and 1875. It replaced the rigsdaler specie at par and was subdivided into 120 skilling . It was replaced by the Norwegian krone when Norway joined the Scandinavian Monetary Union...
. There are four 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"...
(NOK) to one specidaler. for the Meråker route. Surveys along the Verdal route deemed the route unsuitable. This presumed a narrow gauge (1067 millimetres (42 in)) railway, common in Norway at the time. Operating profits were estimated to give a 4.5% return on capital. Shares in the railway company were offered for sale in 1871; the largest purchaser was the City of Trondheim, who bought shares for NOK 1.2 million. In Trondheim alone, private investors bought an additional NOK 3.6 million in shares.
In the spring of 1871, the line was considered by the Standing Committee for Railways in the Parliament of Norway. The proposition was voted down at 64 votes to 42. After a local railway committee was established, parliament passed legislation to build the line on 2 May 1872. The state would receive shares in the company equal to their monetary contribution. A suggestion from Johan Sverdrup
Johan Sverdrup
Johan Sverdrup was a Norwegian politician from the Liberal Party. He was the first Prime Minister of Norway after the introduction of parliamentarism. Sverdrup was Prime Minister from 1884 to 1889.- Early years :...
that required the company to also borrow NOK 1.4 million was voted down 58 votes to 52. In Sweden, the work was meeting resistance, and many Trondheim businesspeople chose to purchase shares in the Swedish part of the line to secure the financing of the Swedish part. In 1873, the Parliament of Sweden
Parliament of Sweden
The Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
voted to build a narrow gauge railway from Torpshammar
Torpshammar
Torpshammar is a locality situated in Ånge Municipality, Västernorrland County, Sweden with 493 inhabitants in 2005. It was founded in 1797 as an iron milling community....
to the Norwegian border; there was already a railway line from Torpshammar to Sundsvall
Sundsvall
-External links:* - Official site from Nordisk Familjebok - Sundsvalls tourist information bureau. - The alternative guide to Sundsvall. - Blog with photos from Sundsvall....
, the Sundsvall–Torpshammars Railway.
The Norwegian Parliament gave NOK 400,000 in support in 1873, and doubled it the following year. By then, the Swedish authorities had decided that all railways should be built in 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...
, and the Norwegian Parliament chose to change their configuration to the same gauge in 1874, increasing estimated costs from NOK 4.7 to 8.9 million. This was a similar arrangement to what would happen with the two international lines in Eastern Norway, where the Kongsvinger and Østfold Lines were also built with standard gauge. Despite intense lobbying from representatives from Innherred, the Verdal alternative was finally discarded when parliament gave NOK 3 million to the Meråker Line.
Construction
In Stjørdal, there was still a question of where the route should go. The river StjørdalselvaStjørdalselva
Stjørdalselva is a long river that reaches from near the Norwegian–Swedish border down the Stjørdalen valley through the municipalities of Meråker and Stjørdal before entering the Trondheimsfjord. The mouth is located between the villages of Stjørdalshalsen and Hell just south of Trondheim...
created a barrier just north of Hell
Hell Station
Hell Station is a railway station located in the village of Hell in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located at the intersection of the Nordland Line and Meråker Line....
, and it would be cheaper to make the line go on the south shore of the river down to Hegra
Hegra
Hegra is a village and former municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The former municipality encompassed most of the eastern part of the present-day municipality of Stjørdal....
. However, the major population center was located at Stjørdalshalsen, on the north shore of the river. Locally, there were many protests against the line bypassing such a large town, but the cost of the bridge made parliament choose the southern alternative. This gave residents in Stjørdal a considerably longer route to the train, since they had to cross the river to get access to the railway. This decreased the railway's ability to compete with the steam ships and thus the overall profitability of the line. In 1902, just twenty years later, the bridge would be built anyway as part of the Hell–Sunnan Line.
Throndhjem Kalvskinnet Station
Throndhjem Station , sometimes called Kalvskinnet to distinguish it from Brattøra Station, was the first central railway station in Trondheim, Norway. It opened on 5 August 1864 as the terminal station of the narrow gauge Trondhjem–Støren Line...
for the Trondhjem–Støren Line was built as a cul-de-sac
Cul-de-sac
A cul-de-sac is a word of French origin referring to a dead end, close, no through road or court meaning dead-end street with only one inlet/outlet...
station at Kalvskinnet
Kalvskinnet
Kalvskinnet is an area of Trondheim, Norway, southwest in city centre, Midtbyen bordering the river Nidelva in the south. In Sverris saga the place is called akeren. The city is dominated by public offices, including such institutions as the Norwegian University of Science and Technology,...
. It was suggested that the railway station be located at Brattøra
Brattøra
Brattøra is an artificial island in the city of Trondheim in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The island is located at the mouth of the river Nidelva just north of the city centre , west of Nyhavna, and south of Trondheimsfjord. There is a canal that divides the mainland from what is now the island of...
, a man-made peninsula that would be located just north of the city center. This would allow the station to be located next to the port. With the expansion of the southbound Støren Line over the mountains to Oslo, the Røros Line, it was decided to connect both lines to the same station. The cost of the new station
Trondheim Central Station
Trondheim Central Station or Trondheim S is the main railway station serving the city of Trondheim, Norway. Located at Brattøra in the north part of the city center, it is the terminus of the Dovre Line, running southwards, and the Nordland Line, which runs north...
was NOK 1.4 million.
The first blasting was performed during a ceremony in 1875, but the real work did not start until 1876. Construction of the last section into Trondheim, along with the station, did not start until 1878, due to disagreements about the plans. By 1878, tracks were laid from Leangen
Leangen Station
Leangen is a railway station on Nordlandsbanen located in Trondheim, Norway serving the area of Leangen. The station is serviced by the local trains Trønderbanen operated by Norges Statsbaner . The station dates back to the construction of Meråkerbanen , and opened in 1882. The present station...
to the border between Nedre Stjørdal
Nedre Stjørdal
Nedre Stjørdal is a former municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It covered the western part of the present-day municipality of Stjørdal.-History:...
and Øvre Stjørdal
Øvre Stjørdal
Øvre Stjørdal is a former municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It encompassed the present-day municipality of Meråker as well as part of the present-day municipality of Stjørdal.-History:...
(54 km (33.6 mi)). On 27 August 1879, the first train ran from Rotvoll Station
Rotvoll Station
Rotvoll is a railway station on Nordlandsbanen at Rotvoll in Trondheim, Norway. It is served by thecommuter trains Trønderbanen operated by Norges Statsbaner with hourly service to Trondheim and Steinkjer....
, just outside Trondheim, to the national border. Before the line was finished in Sweden, the Norwegian State Railways operated a train once per week from 11 February 1880. Full service was introduced on 17 October 1881, though the line was not yet completed to Östersund
Östersund
Östersund is an urban area in Jämtland in the middle of Sweden. It is the seat of Östersund Municipality and the capital of Jämtland County. Östersund is located at the shores of Sweden's fifth largest lake, Storsjön, opposite the island Frösön, and is the only city in Jämtland. Östersund is the...
; nor did Trondheim Station open until 1882.
The work paid well, and attracted many navvies
Navvy
Navvy is a shorter form of navigator or navigational engineer and is particularly applied to describe the manual labourers working on major civil engineering projects...
to the area. Initial wages were NOK 3.20 per day, though this later was reduced. 2,500 men were employed; despite this there were more seekers than jobs, and the requirement was that a man could carry a railway track. Land owners were compensated NOK 50–200 per hectare
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
(2.5 acres) for cultivated land, and NOK 10 per hectare for forest. Many local farmers made good money offering transport of cargo for the construction, as well as renting out annexes for navvies; others made money as traders. As with all such construction areas, many legal and illegal pubs and brothels were established. After construction was completed, some moved on, while others settled in the area; many of these received jobs with the railway company.
The official opening was on 22 July 1882. The line was opened by King Oscar II
Oscar II of Sweden
Oscar II , baptised Oscar Fredrik was King of Sweden from 1872 until his death and King of Norway from 1872 until 1905. The third son of King Oscar I of Sweden and Josephine of Leuchtenberg, he was a descendant of Gustav I of Sweden through his mother.-Early life:At his birth in Stockholm, Oscar...
of Sweden and Norway. This was at the height of the debate on parliamentarianism
Parliamentary system
A parliamentary system is a system of government in which the ministers of the executive branch get their democratic legitimacy from the legislature and are accountable to that body, such that the executive and legislative branches are intertwined....
and the king's right to veto the Norwegian Parliament, and the king used the opening ceremonies and speeches at each station to encourage people to support union between Sweden and Norway
Union between Sweden and Norway
The Union between Sweden and Norway , officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, consisted of present-day Sweden and Norway between 1814 and 1905, when they were united under one monarch in a personal union....
, and pointed out how the railway would better connect the brother nations. In contrast, in Hegra no-one from the municipal council chose to attend the opening ceremony, and no-one from Nedre Stjørdal attended the opening at Hell either.
The first years
By 1880, the railway had six locomotives at its disposal. No. 1–2 were Class 14 that were intended as helping power to get trains up the steep climb from GudåGudå
Gudåa or Gudå is a village in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located along the river Stjørdalselva, about west of the municipal center of Midtbygda. The village is served by Gudå Station on the Meråker Line railway as well as the European route E14 highway. ...
to Storlien. No. 3–6 were Class 9 locomotives that would do the main haulage from Gudå
Gudå
Gudåa or Gudå is a village in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located along the river Stjørdalselva, about west of the municipal center of Midtbygda. The village is served by Gudå Station on the Meråker Line railway as well as the European route E14 highway. ...
into Trondheim. In 1883, NSB's other two Class 14 locomotives were transferred from the Smaalenene Line. The initial fleet consisted of 24 passenger and nine breaking cars, all from Skabo
Skabo Jernbanevognfabrikk
Skabo Jernbanevognfabrikk was a mechanical workshop focusing on design and construction of railcars. It was established by Hans Skabo in Drammen, Norway in 1864; it became the first rail car factory in the country when it took delivery of the cars for Kongsvingerbanen...
. The line featured the first bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
cars in the country, with an single entrance at the end of each car, instead of individual doors for each compartment. There were also bought 37 closed freight car
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
s, 40 lumber cars
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
, 20 boxcar
Boxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
s, 100 flatcar
Flatcar
A flatcar is a piece of railroad or railway rolling stock that consists of an open, flat deck on four or six wheels or a pair of trucks or bogies . The deck of the car can be wood or steel, and the sides of the deck can include pockets for stakes or tie-down points to secure loads...
s and three milk cars. At first all trains were mixed freight and passenger.
In addition to the trains heading for Sweden, there was also a commuter train that ran, first from Hommelvik
Hommelvik Station
Hommelvik Station is a railway station located in the village of Hommelvik in the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is east of Trondheim....
, then from Hegra
Hegra Station
Hegra Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Hegra in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Hegre. It received the current name on 1 June 1919, and has been unmanned since 1 March 1971. It is served...
, into Trondheim in the morning, and returning after work in the evening. Since there was no depot at Hegra, the locomotive had to return without cars to Hommelvik for the nightly overhaul. The 854 km (530.7 mi) route from Trondheim to Stockholm initially took 57 hours 48 minutes. By 1904, this was reduced to 26 hours, mostly due to reducing the length of the layover between trains.
On 24 June 1884, the Røros Line was connected to the Brattøra Station, and a common maintenance depot was introduced for both railways. The Meråker Line's locomotives were then renumbered, starting at 51, to keep them distinguished from the Røros Line's. From the same year, the Meråker Line was assigned two Class 8 locomotives. From 1896, Class 15 locomotives were used, and two years later supplemented by the Class 17.
By 1900, the revenue of the line was at NOK 533,306 per year, most of which was from the freight traffic. This gave a return of capital of 1–2%. Freight traffic increased about twice as fast as passenger traffic, and in 1904 a new daily train was put into service to Storlien. In 1902, the first section of the Hell–Sunnan Line opened to Stjørdalshalsen. It was gradually expanded to Verdal and Sunnan
Sunnan
Sunnan or Sundan is a village in the municipality of Steinkjer in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the area between the lakes Snåsavatnet and Fossemvatnet about northeast of the town of Steinkjer...
. At first the trains along the Hell–Sunnan Line were decoupled at Hell Station
Hell Station
Hell Station is a railway station located in the village of Hell in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located at the intersection of the Nordland Line and Meråker Line....
, but from 1909 on direct trains to Trondheim started operating.
Impact
The Meråker Line was of great economic and social importance for the villages it passed through. It allowed much quicker transport into Trondheim, and the station buildings became centers of community life. For the first time these places had telegraph stations and daily post deliveries. The quick transport meant that many more people chose to travel in to Trondheim, which gained an advantage over other towns, such as Levanger and Stjørdalshalsen, in becoming the regional center for trade. Stjørdalshalsen especially lost much of its importance for the villages up the valley Stjørdalen. For farmers, the railway made it possible to sell fresh dairy products to Trondheim, and even to Sundsvall. New markets, combined with good income during construction that allowed for investments in machinery, increased the revenue and profits for agriculture along the line. By 1900, 68 people were employed by the railway in Meråker alone.Storlien
Storlien is a village and ski resort in the Åre municipality, in Jämtland, Sweden, a kilometre from the Swedish-Norwegian border.The village has only 78 permanent inhabitants. The work opportunities are based on tourism and shopping. Most tourists are Norwegians or Swedes. Shopping tourists arrive...
, just on the Swedish side of the national border, grew up as a resort, with the first hotel established just after the railway arrived. Trade between the two countries increased, as Jämtland had easy access to the Trøndelag market. However, the freight rates were so high that it was cheaper to send some products to Trøndelag from the Swedish east coast by ship around Scania
Scania
Scania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
.
Meråker saw in industrial boom due to the railway. There was already a copper mine and smelters at Kopperå
Kopperå
Kopperå is a village in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village lies about east of the municipal center of Midtbygda and about west of the Swedish border. The Meråker Line railway runs through the village and stops at the Kopperå Station...
, and they saw the railway as a possibility to change from locally produced charcoal
Charcoal
Charcoal is the dark grey residue consisting of carbon, and any remaining ash, obtained by removing water and other volatile constituents from animal and vegetation substances. Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis, the heating of wood or other substances in the absence of oxygen...
to imported coke
Coke (fuel)
Coke is the solid carbonaceous material derived from destructive distillation of low-ash, low-sulfur bituminous coal. Cokes from coal are grey, hard, and porous. While coke can be formed naturally, the commonly used form is man-made.- History :...
. In 1887, a pulp mill
Pulp mill
A pulp mill is a manufacturing facility that converts wood chips or other plant fibre source into a thick fibre board which can be shipped to a paper mill for further processing. Pulp can be manufactured using mechanical, semi-chemical or fully chemical methods...
was opened, but it burned down in 1912. The most important industry was the carbide
Carbide
In chemistry, a carbide is a compound composed of carbon and a less electronegative element. Carbides can be generally classified by chemical bonding type as follows: salt-like, covalent compounds, interstitial compounds, and "intermediate" transition metal carbides...
factory that opened in Kopperå in 1900—Meraker Smelteverk
Elkem Meraker
Elkem Meraker, formerly known as Meraker Smelteverk, was a microsilica plant located at Kopperå in Meråker, Norway. The plant was established in 1898 to manufacture carbide, put later rebuilt to manufacture microsilica. In 1981, it was sold from Union Carbide to Elkem. Products were transported...
. Though located close to the hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...
sources in Meråker, the import and export of raw and finished materials would not have been possible without the railway. A port for the plant was built at Muruvik
Muruvik
Muruvika or Muruvik is a village in the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located near the end of the Stjørdalsfjorden, an arm of the Trondheimsfjord...
in 1918.
Lumber export was one of the main driving forces for building railways at the time, and the Meråker Line was no exception. In both Stjørdalen and the vast areas of Jämtland and Northern Sweden are huge amounts of woodlands. The Meråker Line ran straight through this area, and was seen as a new possibility to export lumber to the continent, where there was high demand for it. Before the railway was built, there was a small sawmill in Hommelvik
Hommelvik
Hommelvik is a village and the administrative centre of the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located at the end of the Hommelvika, a bay off of the Trondheimsfjord. It is about southwest of Muruvika, about southeast of Smiskaret, about east of Vikhammer,...
. In 1881, the Scotsman Lewis Miller bought huge areas of woods in Jämtland, as well as nine sawmills in Sweden. All the produce from these were then sent to Hommelvik for processing and shipment. At the most he employed 100 men, and exported up to 183000000 m³ (6,462,583,916.9 cu ft) of lumber each year. Also located at Hommelvik were two wharfs owned by NSB, and one of the major imports was coal for the Swedish State Railways
Statens Järnvägar
The Swedish State Railways or SJ, originally the Royal Railway Board , is a former government agency responsible for operating the state railways in Sweden....
.
World War I and beyond
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
proved to be a boom for the Meråker Line. The line suddenly became a transit corridor for shipments from Russia, as well as from Sweden, to the ports in Trondheim and Hommelvik. To cope with the increased traffic, NSB had to both rent equipment from Sweden and acquire ten new Class 21
NSB Class XXI
NSB Class XXI is a steam locomotive class designed by the Norwegian State Railways exclusively for use on the Setesdal Line.-External links: at Norwegian Railway Club...
and Class 35 locomotives between 1913 and 1918. Four of these were from other lines, while the others were new. With the new locomotives, the dimensioned axle weight needed to be upgraded to 14 tonne, which mostly involved improving the bridges. The bridge at Funna was dismounted and sold to be used on the Gråkallen Line of the Trondheim Tramway
Trondheim Tramway
Trondheim Tramway located in Trondheim, Norway consists presently of one 8.8 km tramway line, Gråkallbanen, from St. Olav's Gate in the city centre through Byåsen to Lian Station in Bymarka...
. Class 35 was used on the Gudå–Storlien section, and replaced the aging Class 14. They remained in service until 1929, when they were transferred to the Ofoten Line.
From 1927, the first pure through-passenger trains started operating in the summer, towards Sweden in the morning and back during the evening. From 1933 it operated all year. Through the 1920s and 1930s, many shorter distances received extra trains, and passenger and freight trains were gradually separated into separate trains. The traffic through Trondheim–Hell increased; commuter trains terminated at several different stations. From 1930, multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
s were also put into use on the line.
World War II
During the German occupation of NorwayOccupation of Norway by Nazi Germany
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany started with the German invasion of Norway on April 9, 1940, and ended on May 8, 1945, after the capitulation of German forces in Europe. Throughout this period, Norway was continuously occupied by the Wehrmacht...
from 9 April 1940, traffic continued in ordinary fashion until 14 April, when a telephone message was misunderstood, and Norwegian military forces shot at a train they thought had Germans on board. After this, traffic on the line was halted. On the Swedish side of the border, 1 to 2 km (0.621372736649807 to 1.2 ) of track was broken to hinder the Germans from using the line to access Sweden. Local traffic to Kopperå
Kopperå
Kopperå is a village in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village lies about east of the municipal center of Midtbygda and about west of the Swedish border. The Meråker Line railway runs through the village and stops at the Kopperå Station...
started again on 25 April. On 17 May, a multiple unit
Multiple unit
The term multiple unit or MU is used to describe a self-propelled carriages capable of coupling with other units of the same or similar type and still being controlled from one driving cab. The term is commonly used to denote passenger trainsets consisting of more than one carriage...
ran to Storlien with a general to discuss reopening the line. The answer was negative, but on 24 May, an agreement was struck. At the same time, military trains were put into use, from Snåsa
Snåsa
Snåsa is a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherred region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Snåsa. Other villages include Agle and Jørstad....
and Steinkjer
Steinkjer
is a town and a municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is part of the Innherad region. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Steinkjer, which is also the seat of the county government...
to Storlien, and onwards to Narvik
Narvik
is the third largest city and municipality in Nordland county, Norway by population. Narvik is located on the shores of the Narvik Fjord . The municipality is part of the Ofoten traditional region of North Norway, inside the arctic circle...
. After transport on the Ofot Line to Narvik (via Sweden) was officially reopened on 2 August, there were regular trains from Trondheim via the Meråker Line to Narvik, with up to three trains a day.
On 19 November 1940, a train with workers from Trondheim to the airport collided with the local train from Kopperå just east of Hommelvik Station
Hommelvik Station
Hommelvik Station is a railway station located in the village of Hommelvik in the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is east of Trondheim....
. The Hommelvik train disaster
Hommelvik train disaster
The Hommelvik train disaster was a train collision at Hommelvik Station, on the Meråker Line in Norway.On 19 November 1940, a train with workers from Trondheim Central Station to Trondheim Airport, Værnes collided with the local train from Kopperå just east of Hommelvik Station. The Hommelvik train...
killed 22 people. The trains were supposed to have passed at Homnmelvik Station, but the engineer thought he had seen the other train, and had left the station. The accident occurred at 08:03, and was caused by there being virtually no light to see with, since all outdoor sources of light were covered. On 23 January 1941, a coke and coal train from Sweden lost its braking between the border and Kopperå. The six back cars plus the caboose derailed just west of Kopperå Station
Kopperå Station
Kopperå Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Kopperå in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 1 April 1899 as Kopperaasen. It was renamed Kopperåen in April 1924...
, while the locomotive and 17 other trains continued their wild flight. The train derailed at Meråker Station
Meråker Station
Meråker Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Midtbygda in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Meraker, and received the current name in 1 June 1919....
, and the Meråker train disaster
Meråker train disaster
The Meråker train disaster occurred on 23 January 1941 at Meråker Station on the Meråker Line in Norway. A coke and coal train from Sweden lost its braking between the national border and Kopperå Station. The six back cars plus the caboose derailed just west of Kopperå, while the locomotive and 17...
killed both the engineer and the stoker.
The railway and its personnel were an active part of the Norwegian resistance movement
Norwegian resistance movement
The Norwegian resistance to the occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany began after Operation Weserübung in 1940 and ended in 1945. It took several forms:...
during the war. In particular, Swedish newspapers and literature were smuggled into the country, primarily by stokers, who hid the material in the coal. Also, people who were not able to flee to Sweden via the mountains, or needed to get out in a hurry, were sometimes smuggled on board the trains, primarily on German trains. Illegal documents and microfilms were also smuggled out. For German transport trains, track-side employees tried to create "delays".
Post-war
After the war there was limited resources for new rolling stocks and upgrades to the line. Multiple units gradually took over passenger trains, and by 1957, no passenger trains to Storlien were locomotive hauled. Freight volumes remained high throughout the following decades, and in 1961, the new Di 3NSB Di 3
NSB Di 3 is a class of 35 diesel-electric locomotives built by Nydqvist och Holm for the Norwegian State Railways . The class was built between 1954 and 1969, and delivered in two series, Di 3a and Di 3b. They are based on the Electro-Motive Division F7 and are equipped with EMD 567 engines...
diesel locomotives were put into service. The last steam engine was taken out of service in 1971. Hegra
Hegra Station
Hegra Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Hegra in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Hegre. It received the current name on 1 June 1919, and has been unmanned since 1 March 1971. It is served...
, Sona
Sona Station
Sona Station was a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Sona in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 31 December 1897. It has been unmanned since 1 March 1971.-References:...
and Flornes Station
Flornes Station
Flornes Station was a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Flornes in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Floren. It changed name to Flora in April 1921, and to the current on 1 January 1924. It has been...
s were made unmanned in 1970. By 1980, cargo volumes were up to the level seen during World War I. The Norwegian National Rail Administration, who owns the railway, has changed the definition of the railway lines so that the Nordland Line now runs from Trondheim via Hell to Bodø, while the Meråker Line branches off from the Nordland Line at Hell.
Swedish Air Force
The Swedish Air Force is the air force branch of the Swedish Armed Forces.-History:The Swedish Air Force was created on July 1, 1926 when the aircraft units of the Army and Navy were merged. Because of the escalating international tension during the 1930s the Air Force was reorganized and expanded...
built a NOK 32 million storage area for aviation fuel
Aviation fuel
Aviation fuel is a specialized type of petroleum-based fuel used to power aircraft. It is generally of a higher quality than fuels used in less critical applications, such as heating or road transport, and often contains additives to reduce the risk of icing or explosion due to high temperatures,...
at Muruvik
Muruvik
Muruvika or Muruvik is a village in the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located near the end of the Stjørdalsfjorden, an arm of the Trondheimsfjord...
. The terminal would be a reserve in case of an attack on Sweden, and the Meråker Line was to be used to transport the fuel into Sweden. The depot was sold in 1988 to Petrofina
Petrofina
Petrofina was a Belgian oil company which merged with Total in 1999 to form TotalFina, but the name has now been changed back to Total after another merger...
, following the Royal Norwegian Air Force
Royal Norwegian Air Force
The Royal Norwegian Air Force is the air force of Norway. It was established as a separate arm of the Norwegian armed forces on 10 November 1944. The RNoAF's peace force is approximately 1,430 employees . 600 personnel also serve their draft period in the RNoAF...
's quest to build a pipeline to the NATO-base at Trondheim Airport, Værnes
Trondheim Airport, Værnes
Trondheim Airport, Værnes is an international airport located in Stjørdal, east of Trondheim, Norway. Operated by the state-owned Avinor, it shares facilities with Værnes Air Station of the Royal Norwegian Air Force. In 2010, the airport had 3,521,734 passengers and 55,747 air movements,...
.
The establishment of the paper mill Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn is a paper mill located in Levanger in Norway. The mill was the first mill in the Norske Skog Corporation and opened in 1962. It has three paper machines and produces 600,000 tonnes of newsprint annually...
in 1969 created a new freight train route between Jämtland and Skogn
Skogn
Skogn is a village and former municipality in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located in the present-day municipality of Levanger. It is home to the Fiborgtangen industrial area.The village of Skogn is located about southwest of the town of Levanger...
. In 2005, the line had 400000 tonne of cargo, of which half was for Norske Skog, and 130000 tonne was for Elkem Meraker, the smelter. After the latter closed the following year, freight amounts went down, but up to 100000 tonne may be recaptured from truck transport on European Route E14
European route E14
European route E 14 is a road part of the International E-road network. It begins in Trondheim, Norway and ends in Sundsvall, Sweden. The road is in length....
for Norske Skog. In 2006, the line received a major overhaul for NOK 60 million. The maximum axle load was increased from 18 tonne to 22.5 tonne, equivalent to the standard on the Swedish side, and the maximum speed for freight trains increased from 50 to 80 km/h (31.1 to 49.7 mph) for freight trains, and from 100 to 130 km/h (62.1 to 80.8 mph) for passenger trains. By 2007, the line had carried 5300000 tonne of lumber to the mill.
A new tunnel is being built west of Hell, to be finished 2012. It is called Gevingåsen Tunnel
Gevingåsen Tunnel
Gevingåsen Tunnel is a railway tunnel under construction between Hommelvik and Hell, Norway, on the Nordland Line. Blasting was started in 2009, and the tunnel is scheduled for completion in 2011 at a cost of...
and will be 4.4 kilometres (2.7 mi) and will shorten the travel time by 5 minutes and allow a capacity increase.
Plans for electrification
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...
of the line have existed since the 1940s. The Swedish side had already been electrified, and at the time Norway was performing a massive electrification of the railway network, but other projects received higher priority. When the mass electrification was finished in 1970, all trackage north of Trondheim was allocated to diesel operations. The matter of electrification comes up regularly in public debate. Norges Statsbaner has stated that they will be retiring the current Class 92 trains around 2015, and that they hope that the Trøndelag Commuter Rail could be electrified at the same time. If new diesel stock is bought, it could be 2050 before electric operation on the dieselized sections is realized. An electrification of Trondheim–Steinkjer would probably include the Meråker Line as well.
Current operations
Passenger
Norges Statsbaner (NSB) operates two daily round trips between Trondheim and Östersund in Sweden. Using Class 92 trains, travel time from Trondheim to MeråkerMeråker Station
Meråker Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Midtbygda in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Meraker, and received the current name in 1 June 1919....
is 1 hour 19 minutes, to Storlien 1 hour 44 minutes, and to Östersund 3 hours 56 minutes.
Freight
TimberLumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
and transit containers
Containerization
Containerization is a system of freight transport based on a range of steel intermodal containers...
are the most common freight products on the Meråker Line. 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...
is the dominant transporter, using Di 8
NSB Di 8
The NSB Di 8 is a class of diesel electric locomotives used by Norwegian railway company CargoNet for freight use.20 engines were built between 1996 and 1997 at the Maschinenbau Kiel plant in Kiel whilst it was part of Siemens Schienenfahrzeugtechnik...
and CD66
EMD Series 66
The Electro-Motive Diesel Class 66 is a series of Co-Co six axle diesel locomotives built by EMD for the European heavy freight market....
as haulage. In particular, timber is transported to the port at Hommelvik
Hommelvik
Hommelvik is a village and the administrative centre of the municipality of Malvik in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. The village is located at the end of the Hommelvika, a bay off of the Trondheimsfjord. It is about southwest of Muruvika, about southeast of Smiskaret, about east of Vikhammer,...
and to the paper mill Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn
Norske Skog Skogn is a paper mill located in Levanger in Norway. The mill was the first mill in the Norske Skog Corporation and opened in 1962. It has three paper machines and produces 600,000 tonnes of newsprint annually...
. From 2006 to 2008, the timber trains were hauled by Ofotbanen.
Stations
| Name | DistanceDistance from Trondheim Central Station Trondheim Central Station Trondheim Central Station or Trondheim S is the main railway station serving the city of Trondheim, Norway. Located at Brattøra in the north part of the city center, it is the terminus of the Dovre Line, running southwards, and the Nordland Line, which runs north... |
TimeTime from Trondheim Central Station | Elevation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hell Hell Station Hell Station is a railway station located in the village of Hell in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. It is located at the intersection of the Nordland Line and Meråker Line.... |
31.54 km (19.6 mi) | 42 min | 3.2 m (10.5 ft) |
| Hegra Hegra Station Hegra Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Hegra in the municipality of Stjørdal in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Hegre. It received the current name on 1 June 1919, and has been unmanned since 1 March 1971. It is served... |
42.2 km (26.2 mi) | 49 min | 12.8 m (42 ft) |
| Gudå Gudå Station Gudå Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line at the village of Gudå in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Gudaa. It was renamed Gudaaen in 1894, and received the current name in April 1924.The station has been... |
72.02 km (44.8 mi) | 1 h 10 min | 85.3 m (279.9 ft) |
| Meråker Meråker Station Meråker Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Midtbygda in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 17 October 1881 as Meraker, and received the current name in 1 June 1919.... |
81.08 km (50.4 mi) | 1 h 19 min | 219.6 m (720.5 ft) |
| Kopperå Kopperå Station Kopperå Station is a railway station on the Meråker Line in the village of Kopperå in the municipality of Meråker in Nord-Trøndelag county, Norway. The station was opened on 1 April 1899 as Kopperaasen. It was renamed Kopperåen in April 1924... |
88.3 km (54.9 mi) | 1 h 27 min | 328.5 m (1,077.8 ft) |
| Storlien Storlien Station Storlien Station is a railway station located at Storlien in Åre Municipality municipality, Sweden. Located east of the Norway–Sweden border, it serves as the name-change between the Norwegian Meråker Line and the Swedish Central Line. The altitude is , the highest station in Sweden... |
105.97 km (65.8 mi) | 1 h 44 min |