Gardermoen Line
| Length: | Starts: | Ends: | Status: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 64 km | Oslo S | Eidsvoll Station | In service |
The Gardermoen Line a 64-kilometre long high-speed railway line in Norway. It was primary built in order to get a fast connection to the new main airport for Oslo which opened in 1998. The Gardermoen Line also replaced the old Trunk Line for high-speed passenger train services towards Trondheim.
The Gardermoen Line. Photo: Erlend Garåsen
Water leaks
In 1997, large leaks were discovered in Romeriksporten. The water level in the lakes Lutvann and Puttjern sank radically and several damages to nearby houses occurred. The Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate set thresholds for allowable water leaks. During the Autumn the same year, it was tried to block the leaks by using the industrial sealant Rhoca-Gil. This work was soon terminated when it was known that the sealant could cause Acrylamide emissions which is considered to affect people's risk of developing cancer. As a result, the construction costs increased and the tunnel was not finished on time.
The opening
On 10 June 1998, the Norwegian State Railways decided to postpone the opening of Romeriksporten as a result of the leakages. The stretch between Lillestrøm and Eidsvoll was opened in August. A temporary speed limit of 160 kilometres per hour was set for the Gardermoen Line. As long as the tunnel work continued, the trains were diverted via the Trunk Line instead between Lillestrøm and Oslo. On 22 August 1999, the Romeriksporten was opened as well as the complete Gardermoen Line.
Reorganisation
It was planned from the beginning that the Gardermoen Line should be profitable. When this goal was not realised, the Government approved in June 2000 that the Norwegian National Rail Administration should take over the NSB Gardermoenbanen AS' infrastructure. The year after, the operator was now named _Flytoget AS_. The Parliament decided that this company should be organised as a state-owned enterprise under control of the Ministry of Transport and Communications from 1 January 2003. In June the same year, Flytoget was allowed to increase the maximum permitted speed to 210 kilometres per hour, reducing the travel time between Oslo and Gardermoen to 19 minutes. During the Spring 2015, Flytoget ordered eight new train sets from the Spanish manufacturer CAF which will be put into service in 2018. Since these trains are capable of 250 kilometres per hour, Flytoget's intention is to increase the speed on the Gardermoen Line.
Old Gardermoen Line
Gardermoen was connected by a railway a long time ago before the opening of the Gardermoen Line. The Haueseter–Gardermoen Line was opened on 13 June 1941 and was a branch line of the Trunk Line between Haueseter and Gardermoen. The 6.7-kilometre long stretch was used by local industries and the military airport at Gardermoen. Most of the line is today abolished due to the construction of the new main airport and the new Highway E6.