The Grorud Line ( no, Grorudbanen) is a line on the
Oslo Metro
The Oslo Metro ( no, Oslo T-bane or or simply ) is the rapid transit system of Oslo, Norway, operated by Sporveien T-banen on contract from the transit authority Ruter. The network consists of five lines that all run through the city centre, w ...
between
Tøyen
Tøyen is a residential area in the central parts of Oslo, Norway, part of the borough of Gamle Oslo.
Location
There are two different stations which carry the name Tøyen. Tøyen Railway Station is located on the Gjøvik Line, while Tøyen ...
and
Vestli in
Oslo
Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
. Built as a mix of underground, at ground level and as an elevated line, it runs through the northern part of
Groruddalen
The Grorud Valley ( no, Groruddalen)
is a valley and urban area
or suburb
in the northeastern part of Oslo, the capital of Norway. Four of Oslo's boroughs lie within the Grorud Valley; Bjerke to the west, Alna to the south, Grorud to the north ...
, serving such neighborhoods as
Grorud
Grorud is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The borough contains the Ammerud, Grorud, Kalbakken, Rødtvet, Nordtvet and Romsås areas. To the north of the borough is the forest of Lillomarka. The borough is the smallest in Oslo, with fewe ...
,
Romsås and
Stovner. Line 5 runs along the entire line four times per hour. Line 4 runs between Vestli and Økern before branching off on the
Løren Line to get onto the
Ring Line. With 40,000 daily riders, the Grorud Line is the busiest branch of the metro.
Proposals for an urban railway through the upper parts of Groruddalen were first articulated in public documents in 1919. Planning started in the late 1940s and the line was politically approved in 1954, along with three other metro lines and the
Common Tunnel
The Common Tunnel ( no, Fellestunnelen), sometimes called the Common Line (), is a long tunnel of the Oslo Metro which runs through the city center of Oslo, Norway. The name derives from the fact that all five lines of the metro use the tunnel, ...
. Construction started in 1956 and was part of a process to transform Groruddalen into a residential area. The first part of the Grorud Line, from Tøyen to
Grorud
Grorud is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The borough contains the Ammerud, Grorud, Kalbakken, Rødtvet, Nordtvet and Romsås areas. To the north of the borough is the forest of Lillomarka. The borough is the smallest in Oslo, with fewe ...
, was opened on 16 October 1966. The rest of the line opened in three stages: to
Rommen on 3 March 1974, to
Stovner on 18 August and to
Vestli on 21 December 1975. The
Ring Line connection opened on 22 August 2006 and on 3 April 2013 the Løren Line opened, connecting the Grorud Line to the Ring Line.
Route
![Stovner stasjon Oslo (wasielgallery 1)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0c/Stovner_stasjon_Oslo_%28wasielgallery_1%29.jpg)
The Grorud Line is a and runs through the northern side of
Groruddalen
The Grorud Valley ( no, Groruddalen)
is a valley and urban area
or suburb
in the northeastern part of Oslo, the capital of Norway. Four of Oslo's boroughs lie within the Grorud Valley; Bjerke to the west, Alna to the south, Grorud to the north ...
in Oslo. Through the lower section of the line it passes through a mixed residential and commercial area. The Grorud Line branches from the Common Tunnel at Tøyen and continues in a tunnel to Carl Berners plass. At this point there is also a direct, single-track tunnel which allows non-revenue trains access to
Ryen Depot
Ryen Depot ( no, Ryen vognhall) is the main depot for the Oslo Metro, and is located at Ryen in Oslo, Norway. The depot contains of buildings and has space for 120 trains, and consists of an workshop, inspection hall and a storage hall. It opene ...
.
North of Carl Berners plass the Ring Line branches off from the Grorud Line. The latter continues in an S-curve to the neighborhood of
Hasle, where it leaves the tunnel and reaches
Hasle Station. It continues through a short tunnel under the
Alna Line and
Ring 3 before reaching
Økern Station. Along this section the Løren Line connects to the Grorud Line.
The line continues past
Risløkka Station parallel to Østre Aker vei. It continues past
Vollebekk Station and
Linderud
Linderud is a neighborhood in Bjerke borough, Oslo, Norway. The area originally formed part of the estate of Linderud Manor.
Linderud Manor
Linderud Manor ''(Linderud gård'') was owned by the Catholic Church before the Reformation of 1536, an ...
, after which the character of the area changes to residential. The line crosses over to run parallel with
National Road 4 from
Veitvet Station. The line crosses under National Road 4 and continues past
Rødtvet Station and
Kalbakken Station. The line then enters a tunnel which it leaves before reaching
Ammerud Station.
Next the line reaches
Grorud Station
Grorud Station ( no, Grorud stasjon) is a railway station on the Trunk Line located in the Grorud borough of Oslo, Norway. Situated from Oslo Central Station, it consists of three tracks with a side platforms and an island platform.
Grorud is ...
and immediately afterwards enters a tunnel.
Romsås Station is located within the tunnel, which ends just before reaching
Rommen Station. The line continues at ground level until just before
Stovner Station, at which time it enters a tunnel.
The line continues in this tunnel until reaching the terminus of
Vestli Station.
Service
![Vestli stasjon Oslo 2009 r 1](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/82/Vestli_stasjon_Oslo_2009_r_1.jpg)
The Grorud line is served by lines 4 and 5 of the Oslo Metro, both lines running four times per hour. All have reduced services during late evenings and parts of the weekends. Line 5 runs the entire section of the Grorud Line, while line 4 runs between Vestli and Økern before branching off on the
Løren Line and
Ring Line. The two lines use the same amount of time to reach Majorstuen. For journeys to the central stations between Tøyen and Nationaltheateret, line 5 is quicker. For journeys to the stations between Blindern and Sinsen, line 4 is quicker.
Operations of the lines are done by
Sporveien T-banen
Sporveien T-banen AS is a limited company that is responsible for operating Oslo Metro ( no, Oslo T-bane), the rapid transit in Oslo, Norway. The company is owned by Sporveien, which is owned by the city council. Sporveien operates on a contract w ...
on contract with Ruter, the public transport authority in Oslo and
Akershus.
The infrastructure itself is owned by
Sporveien
Sporveien Oslo AS is a municipally owned public transport operator in Oslo, Norway. It operates the trackage and maintains the stock of the Oslo Metro and Oslo Tramway, as well as owning eight operating subsidiaries. In 2005, its 2,365 employees ...
, a municipal company. Service is provided using
MX3000
MX3000 is an electric train used on Oslo Metro in Oslo, Norway. The multiple units are produced by Siemens Mobility, who started serial delivery in 2007. Seventy-eight three-car units were ordered by Sporveien, and five by Akershus County Mun ...
three- and six-car trains.
The line has 40,000 daily passengers, making it the busiest branch of the metro.
Travel time along the line, from Tøyen to Vestli, is 23 minutes. Travel time from Vestli to
Stortinget in the city center is 27 minutes. Transfer to Ruter buses are available at Tøyen, Carl Berners plass, Hasle, Økern, Linderud, Ammerud, Grorud and Stovner. Transfer to the
Sinsen Line of the
Oslo Tramway
The Oslo tram network ( no, Trikken i Oslo, short from ', 'electric') is the tram system in Oslo, Norway. It consists of six lines with 99 stops and has a daily ridership of 132,000. It is operated by , a subsidiary of the municipally-owned who ...
is available at Carl Berners plass.
History
Planning
The first proposals for a line in the upper part of Groruddalen came as part of a 1917 competition issued by Christiana (later Oslo) and
Aker Municipality to plan a new rail transport plan for the capital area. The winning design, made by Jørgen Barth, included a series of suburban lines, including one in the northern Groruddaen (contemporary known as Akerdalen). This resulted in a municipal urban rail plan that was passed in 1919. It proposed a somewhat different routing, with the Ring Line running via
Grefsen
thumbnail, 250px, Grefsen Church
Grefsen is a neighbourhood in the city of Oslo, Norway.
Grefsen was a part of the municipality of Aker before the Second World War, later incorporated into Oslo. Together with Kjelsås, Grefsen then formed the bo ...
and the Grorud Line running via
Ensjø. Other lines were prioritized first, but from the mid 1930s lines through Groruddalen were again considered. A report was published in 1937, but all work was placed on hold following the
German occupation of Norway
The occupation of Norway by Nazi Germany during the Second World War began on 9 April 1940 after Operation Weserübung. Conventional armed resistance to the German invasion ended on 10 June 1940, and Nazi Germany controlled Norway until th ...
in 1940.
![Grorudbanen construction 9](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/61/Grorudbanen_construction_9.jpg)
Work on the plans resumed in 1946. The new committee quickly concluded that an increase in the magnitude of the suburban lines was needed. An overground system was ruled out because of the increased estimates in traffic and an underground route was instead pursued. This part of the line would need to handle a traffic of 20,000 passengers per hour. At this time the Grorud Line was proposed as a branch of the
Østensjø Line, which would divert at
Etterstad. The municipalities of Oslo and Aker merged in 1948.
Preliminary work on the line planning concluded in 1949 and instead a permanent municipal agency was established, the Planning Office For the Suburban and Underground Lines, on 15 September 1949. Instrumental in the change of magnitude was the change of was a shift in the zoning planning. There was a large housing shortage in Oslo and the region was experiencing rapid population growth. The solution was to build a series of
commuter town
A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many ...
s in Aker, which would be the basis for the traffic on the metro. Plans for both a metro and new housing were substantiated in a 1950 municipal plan.
![Grorudbanen construction 12](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Grorudbanen_construction_12.jpg)
The basics for the metro were established in 1951, with a common segment through Enerhaugen with a terminus at
Grønlands torg, to avoid having to cross
Akerselva
Akerselva or Akerselven ( en, Aker River) is a river which flows through Oslo. It starts at Maridalsvannet in Oslomarka, and traverses the boroughs of Nordre Aker, Sagene, Grünerløkka, central Oslo and Grønland, whereby it finally ends a ...
. The plans were made such that in the future the line could be extended to connect to
Holmenkolbanen
A/S Holmenkolbanen was a company that owned and operated part of the Oslo Tramway and Oslo Metro in Norway from 1898 until 1975 when services were taken over by the majority owner Oslo Sporveier. Holmenkolbanen opened the Holmenkoll Line in 1898, ...
's western underground line at
Nationalthatret. Four branches would be built, including the Grorud Line; the existing Østensjø Line would be converted to metro.
The
Lambertseter Line
The Lambertseter Line ( no, Lambertseterbanen) is a line on the Oslo Metro which runs from Brynseng to Bergkrystallen. It further shares track with the Østensjø Line along the section from Tøyen to Brynseng. The line runs through a primary ...
was politically approved on 3 April 1952 and the full four-line network was approved on 9 December 1954. The latter included moving the terminus to
Jernbanetorget
Jernbanetorget is both a rapid transit station on the Oslo Metro and a tram stop of the Oslo Tramway. The metro station is in the Common Tunnel used by all lines under the city centre. It is located between Stortinget to the west and Grønland ...
. Investments were estimated at 221 million
Norwegian krone, including rolling stock.
Construction
Construction of the Grorud Line started in February 1956. Landwork and electrical equipment was contracted to developers, while the
trackage
A railway track (British English and UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, railroad ties (sleepers, ...
was done by the Planning Office. The original plans called for the use of 600 to 650
volt
The volt (symbol: V) is the unit of electric potential, electric potential difference (voltage), and electromotive force in the International System of Units (SI). It is named after the Italian physicist Alessandro Volta (1745–1827).
Defin ...
(V)
direct current
Direct current (DC) is one-directional flow of electric charge. An electrochemical cell is a prime example of DC power. Direct current may flow through a conductor such as a wire, but can also flow through semiconductors, insulators, or eve ...
(DC) fed via a
pantograph
A pantograph (, from their original use for copying writing) is a mechanical linkage connected in a manner based on parallelograms so that the movement of one pen, in tracing an image, produces identical movements in a second pen. If a line dr ...
, to allow comparability with the western light rail. This was later changed to 750 V DC via a
third rail
A third rail, also known as a live rail, electric rail or conductor rail, is a method of providing electric power to a railway locomotive or train, through a semi-continuous rigid conductor placed alongside or between the rails of a railway ...
.
This was chosen to allow a higher diameter, and thus a higher
ampere, and easier maintenance. The system also took into use
cab signaling
Cab signaling is a railway safety system that communicates track status and condition information to the cab, crew compartment or driver's compartment of a locomotive, railcar or multiple unit. The information is continually updated giving an e ...
and
moving block
In railway signalling, a moving block is a signalling block system where the blocks are defined in real time by computers as safe zones around each train. This requires both knowledge of the exact location and speed of all trains at any given ti ...
s, which were cutting edge technology at the time, and had only been implemented on the
Stockholm Metro in Europe by then. While the permitted
headway on the common sections was set to 90 seconds, it was set to 120 seconds on the Grorud Line.
The original plans called for a depot on each of the lines, including the Grorud Line, but this was later changed to a central depot at
Ryen.
Stations were originally planned to be barrier-free and that the operator would employee conductors on board, similar to what was done of the tramway. This was however abandoned in 1958 and instead the stations were "closed" and ticket stands were installed at each station. The decision to allow
Oslo Sporveier
AS Oslo Sporveier is a defunct municipal owned company responsible for public transport in Oslo, Norway. It was created in 1924 to take over the city's two private tram companies. In 1927 its started with bus transport, including from 1940 to 19 ...
at the line's operator was taken in 1960.
![Grorudbanen construction 11](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0d/Grorudbanen_construction_11.jpg)
The first parts of construction started in February 1956 at Rødtvet. Most of the earthwork was concluded by early 1964 on the section from Hasle to Grorud. This included building a 37-million-kroner tunnel under Ring 3 and the Alna Line.
The construction of the Grorud Line ran parallel with a large-scale residential construction along the line, especially on the upper sections. Commuter towns with a mix of row housing, condominiums and high-rises were built along the line, often concentrating close to the stations. Some also received small shopping centers.
The Grorud Line was originally planned as the inaugural part of the metro, as it was the line which would receive the most traffic. However, lack of sufficient personnel and technical difficulties caused a last-minute shift in these plans and instead the
Lambertseter Line
The Lambertseter Line ( no, Lambertseterbanen) is a line on the Oslo Metro which runs from Brynseng to Bergkrystallen. It further shares track with the Østensjø Line along the section from Tøyen to Brynseng. The line runs through a primary ...
opened on 22 May 1966. Opening of the Grorud Line from Tøyen to Grorud was therefore delayed until 16 November 1966. The line took into use
T1000 trains which could be up to six cars long.
Originally the service terminated at Jernbanetorget in the city center,
in addition to a service which ran via the branch from Carl Berners plass to the Lambertseter Line, and terminated at
Ryen.
![Kalbakken stasjon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/03/Kalbakken_stasjon.jpg)
The line was extended three during the 1970s, when new residential areas further northeast in the valley were completed. The first extension opened on 3 March 1974 from grorud to Rommen.
Most of this ran through a tunnel, including Romsås Station. However, that station was not completed and for the expansion only Rommen was taken into use. The second extension took place on 18 August, with the tunnel from Rommen to Stovner. On the same date Romsås State opened. The final opening took place on 21 December 1975 when the tunnel past Stovener was extended to Vestli.
Operating history
On 9 January 1977, the city center service was extended to
Sentrum. However, this station was closed from 20 March 1983 to 7 March 1987, and reopened as Stortinget.
During the last years of the 1980s the barres and payment stalls were removed and replaced with a
proof-of-payment
Proof-of-payment (POP) or proof-of-fare (POF) is an honor-based fare collection system used on many public transportation systems. Instead of checking each passenger as they enter a fare control zone, passengers are required to carry a ticket, p ...
system. This unmanning of the station allowed for a significant cut in operating costs. From 8 April 1995, the trains on the Grorud Line continued all the way through the Common Tunnel to
Blindern
Blindern is the main campus of the University of Oslo, located in Nordre Aker in Oslo, Norway.
Campus
Most of the departments of the University of Oslo are located at Blindern; other, smaller campuses include Sentrum (law), Gaustad (medicine) ...
on the
Sognsvann Line, which serves the main campus of the
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
.
![Grorudbanen Vollebekk](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1d/Grorudbanen_Vollebekk.jpg)
Line 5 had its western terminus extended to Storo on 20 August 2003, when the first part of the Ring Line opened. In on 17 July 2004, during construction of the Ring Line, part of the tunnel collapsed, causing the Grorud Line to be closed for six months and 40,000 daily passengers had to be bussed around the accident site.
The Ring Line was opened from Carl Berners plass to
Sinsen
Sinsen is a mixed residential and commercial area in Grünerløkka borough of Oslo, Norway. The westernmost part of Sinsen is part of the borough Nordre Aker.
The Sinsen Interchange, located on the border between the boroughs of Nordre Aker, Grün ...
on 22 August 2006, and the section from Tøyen to Carl Berners plass started being served by lines 4 and 6. The metro system started taking delivery of the new
MX3000
MX3000 is an electric train used on Oslo Metro in Oslo, Norway. The multiple units are produced by Siemens Mobility, who started serial delivery in 2007. Seventy-eight three-car units were ordered by Sporveien, and five by Akershus County Mun ...
units in 2007, which would replace the old stock.
From 18 August 2008, the line's frequency on Line 5 was increased from four to eight trains per hour, although the extra trains terminate at Stortinget. By 2010, all T1000 stock had been retired.
From 9 December 2012 the Grorud Line has been connected with the Røa Line in the west. Meanwhile, all services on Line 5 were extended to Røa instead of half terminating at Stortinget.
Construction of the Løren Line began in June 2013. It was scheduled for completion in October 2015 and it was opened in 2016. As part of the project three stations, Romsås, Stovner and Vestli, were to receive upgrades. The work involved closing the Grorud Line's southern portion between September and December 2013. Financed through
Oslo Package 3
Oslo Package 3 is a political agreement and plan for investments of in Oslo and Akershus, Norway. It involves financing for road and public transport infrastructure, as well as operating subsidies to public transport in the period 2008–27. It wi ...
and budgeted to cost 600 million krone, the project will include the new
Løren Station. Line 3, which terminates at
Storo
Storo (''Stòr'' in local dialect) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about southwest of Trento. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 4,554 and an area of .A ...
will be extended to the Grorud Line. It will increase the east–west capacity through the metro system without having to expand the Common Tunnel.
Future
![Roms t tog vest](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/88/Roms_t_tog_vest.jpg)
Ruter has also proposed building a connection with the Furuset Line, between
Furuset and Økern. Trains running on the line will connect to the Ring Line via the Løren Line.
Other proposals involve extending the line to
Slattum
Slattum is a village in Viken, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavi ...
in
Nittedal
Nittedal is a municipality and city in Akershus in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rotnes.
The parish of ''Nitedal'' was established as a m ...
.
In the western end of the Grorudalen, a branch from Stovner has been proposed to connect to the Furuset Line. It would have new stations at Øvre Stovner,
Lørenskog Station
Lørenskog is a railway station on the Trunk Line in Lørenskog, Norway. The station itself lies just outside Oslo's city limit, but when it comes to fares, it is included in the price paid for an Oslo-ticket. It is served by the Oslo Commuter Rai ...
of the
Trunk Line
In telecommunications, trunking is a technology for providing network access to multiple clients simultaneously by sharing a set of circuits, carriers, channels, or frequencies, instead of providing individual circuits or channels for each clie ...
and the
Oslo Commuter Rail
Oslo Commuter Rail ( no, Lokaltog Østlandet) is a commuter rail centered in Oslo, Norway, connecting the capital to six counties in Eastern Norway. The system is operated by Vy (formerly NSB) and its subsidiary Vy Gjøvikbanen, using Class 69 ...
, and
Visperud.
Visperud has also been proposed as a location for a
park and ride
A park and ride, also known as incentive parking or a commuter lot, is a parking lot with public transport connections that allows commuters and other people heading to city centres to leave their vehicles and transfer to a bus, rail system ( ...
for between 500 and 2,000 cars, as it is located on
National Road 159 and
European Route E6. Part of the rationale is to serve the new suburb of
Skårerødgården, which is planned with 1,200 new houses, located within the catchment area of Lørenskog Station.
The line would run entirely underground. The cost of building the from Ellingsrudåsen to Stovner is estimated at NOK 2.4 billion.
Independent of the northern extension, is a branch from the Furuset Line to a point on the Grorud Line.
The plan is to build a new line from Økern via
Breivoll, where there would be an interchange with the Trunk Line, to
Trosterud Station on the Furuset Line. Such a cross connection will allow both interconnection between the lower levels of the Grorud Line and the Furuset Line, and at the same time give access from the Furuset Line to the Ring Line. In addition to this, the plans call for a parallel line to the Furuset Line to run through the lower parts of Grurudalen, between the Furuset Line and the Trunk Line. This line could either connect to the Furuset Line at Furuset, or run across the valley, via
Grorud Station
Grorud Station ( no, Grorud stasjon) is a railway station on the Trunk Line located in the Grorud borough of Oslo, Norway. Situated from Oslo Central Station, it consists of three tracks with a side platforms and an island platform.
Grorud is ...
on the Trunk Line, and connect to the Grorud Line at Rommen.
Notes
References
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External links
{{Railways in Norway
Oslo Metro lines
Railway lines opened in 1966
1966 establishments in Norway