Østbanen (

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

for "The East Line") is a

local railway in the eastern part of

Zealand Zealand ( da, Sjælland ) at 7,031 km2 is the largest and most populous island in Denmark proper (thus excluding Greenland and Disko Island, which are larger in size). Zealand had a population of 2,319,705 on 1 January 2020. It is the 1 ...

. Østbanen started operations on 1 July 1879. It is today part of

Lokaltog Lokaltog A/S ( en, Local Trains Ltd) is a Danish railway company responsible for train operation and related passenger services on nine local railways on the islands of Zealand, Lolland and Falster in Denmark. The company was formed on 1 July 201 ...

, a

railway company A railway company is a company within the rail industry. It can be a manufacturing firm or an rail transport operations, operator. Some railway companies operate both the trains and the track, while, particularly in the European Union, operation ...

operating nine local railways on the islands of

Lolland Lolland (; formerly spelled ''Laaland'', literally "low land") is the fourth largest island of Denmark, with an area of . Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of Region Sjælland (Region Zealand). As of 1 January 2022, it has 57,618 inhabitant ...

and Falster. Since December 2020, trains have run every 30 minutes between

Roskilde Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...

and

Faxe Ladeplads Faxe Ladeplads or Fakse Ladeplads is a coastal town in Denmark with a population of 2,884 (1 January 2022), located in Zealand and lying 5 kilometers south-east from Faxe. It is mainly a harbour town, with a working harbour and a marina. The town ...

via

Køge Køge (, older spelling ''Kjøge'') is a seaport on the coast of Køge Bugt (''Bay of Køge'') 39 km southwest of Copenhagen. It is the principal town and seat of Køge Municipality, Region Sjælland, Denmark. In 2022, the urban area had a ...

and

Hårlev Hårlev is a railway town with a population of 2,865 (1 January 2022) ...

. There are also connecting services from Hårlev to Rødvig with a 3-5 minute connection time. The journey time from Roskilde to Faxe Ladeplads is 68 minutes. Regionstog Østbanen LINT 41 Fakse 790788

Regionstog Østbanen LINT 41 Fakse 790788

The stations of Himlingøje, Lille Linde, Tokkerup are outside of their respective villages, and it is even further between Faxe Syd station and Faxe and from Vallø station to Vallø castle. In addition to the termini, trains can pass at Egøje, Vallø, Grubberholm, Klippinge, Hårlev, Karise and Store Heddinge; Faxe Syd has a short siding, the remaining line is single track and without electrification. All of the

station building A station building, also known as a head house, is the main building of a passenger railway station. It is typically used principally to provide services to passengers. A station building is a component of a station, which can include tracks, p ...

s on the line were designed by architect

Heinrich Wenck Heinrich (Henry) Emil Charles Wenck (10 March 1851 – 3 February 1936) was a Danish architect, known for the numerous railway stations he designed in his capacity of chief architect for the Danish State Railways from 1894 to 1921. During the yea ...

. Since 2009 Alstom Coradia LINT 41 trains have been in use. In 2020, the rail infrastructure was reaching the end of its lifetime and there were political discussions about converting Østbanen into a

guided busway Guided buses are buses capable of being steered by external means, usually on a dedicated track or roll way that excludes other traffic, permitting the maintenance of schedules even during rush hours. Unlike trolleybuses or rubber-tired trams ...

. In June 2021 a majority in the

Danish Parliament The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands an ...

voted for an infrastructure agreement securing the future of Østbanen as a railway.Stevns.dk. ''Godt nyt fra Christiansborg.''
(in Danish) Retrieved 1 July 2021

References

Railway lines in Denmark Rail transport in Region Zealand {{Denmark-transport-stub