Kirkenes—Bjørnevatn Line
| Length: | Starts: | Ends: | Status: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 km | Bjørnevatn Station | Kirkenes Station | Abandoned |
The Kirkenes–Bjørnevatn Line is a 7.5-kilometre industrial line which runs from Bjørnevatn to Kirkenes. It was build to transport iron ore from the mines at Bjørnevatn and was in operation between 1910 and 2015.
Kirkenes—Bjørnevatn Line. Photo: Erlend Garåsen
Unofficial passenger service
The ore wagons were first pulled by steam locomotives, but from 1920 the railway was electrified. The Kirkenes–Bjørnevatn Line had no official passenger service, but employees and other passengers could ride the train free of charge. In June 1944, during WW2, the railway was destroyed and trains stopped running. Passenger service reopened the year after and the ore trains resumed in 1952. In 1950 the passenger service terminated.
Reopening and closure
Diesel trains started to operate from 1955 and the overhead line was dismantled during 1963–1964. Mining terminated in 1996 and the last ore train ran the year after. The railway reopened in 2009 after the Australian company Northern Iron Limited took over. Since the mining was not profitable, it terminated in 2015 and the railway was once again closed.