The Randsfjorden Line ( no, Randsfjordbanen) is an

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

located in

Viken county Viken may refer to: *Viken, Scandinavia, a historical region *Viken (county), a Norwegian county established in 2020 *Viken, Sweden, a bimunicipal locality in Skåne County, Sweden *Viken (lake), a lake in Sweden, part of the part of the Göta cana ...

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 t ...

connecting

Drammen Drammen () is a city and municipality in Viken (county), Viken, Norway. The port and river city of Drammen is centrally located in the south-eastern and most populated part of Norway. Drammen municipality also includes smaller towns and village ...

Hønefoss __NOTOC__ Hønefoss is a town and the administrative center of the municipality of Ringerike in Buskerud county, Norway. Hønefoss is an industrial center of inner Østlandet, containing several factories and other industry. As of 1 January 2008, ...

and

Hadeland Hadeland () is a traditional district in the southeastern part of Norway. It is centered on the southern part of the large lake Randsfjorden in Innlandet and Viken counties. The district consists of the municipalities Gran in Innlandet county ...

Innlandet Innlandet is a county in Norway. It was created on 1 January 2020 with the merger of the old counties of Oppland and Hedmark (the municipalities of Jevnaker and Lunner were transferred to the neighboring county of Viken on the same date). The ...

county. The railway is primarily used for passenger trains, and the only scheduled trains on the stretch are

Norwegian State Railways Vygruppen, branded as Vy, is a government-owned railway company which operates most passenger train services and many bus services in Norway. The company is owned by the Norwegian Ministry of Transport. Its sub-brands include Vy Buss coach s ...

express trains on the

Bergen Line The Bergen Line or the Bergen Railway ( no, Bergensbanen or nn, Bergensbana), is a long scenic standard gauge railway line between Bergen and Hønefoss, Norway. The name is often applied for the entire route from Bergen via Drammen to Oslo, ...

between

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 of ...

and

Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula of ...

. Freight trains to Bergen go to Hønefoss via the

Gjøvik Line The Gjøvik Line ( no, Gjøvikbanen) is a Norwegian railway line between Oslo and Gjøvik. It was originally named the North Line (''Nordbanen'') and ran between Grefsen and Røykenvik. The line was completed to Gjøvik in 1902. The Gjøvik ...

. The railway is owned by the

Norwegian National Rail Administration The Norwegian National Rail Administration ( no, Jernbaneverket) was a government agency responsible for owning, maintaining, operating and developing the Norwegian railway network, including the track, stations, classification yards, traffic m ...

. The entire line is

standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), International gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge and European gauge in Europe, and SGR in Ea ...

, and the from Drammen to Hønefoss is electrified at . The remaining from Hønefoss to Randsfjorden is not electrified and currently disused. The line gets its name from the lake

Randsfjorden Randsfjorden is Norway's fourth-largest lake with an area of . Its volume is estimated at just over , and its greatest depth is . The lake is located at an elevation of above sea level. It is located in Innlandet and Viken counties in the munic ...

History

On 11 June 1857, railway director

Carl Abraham Pihl Carl Abraham Pihl (16 January 1825 – 14 September 1897) was a Norwegian civil engineer and director of the Norwegian State Railways (NSB) from 1865 until his death. Pihl was one of the main architects of the use of narrow-gauge railways in No ...

was demanded by a

Royal Decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used for ...

to instruct a terrain investigation of the area along the river

Drammenselva Drammenselva ( en, Drammen River) is a river in Buskerud county, southeastern Norway. Location Drammenselva is one of the largest rivers in Norway, with a drainage basin of about and a discharge of per second. Drammen River's total length is m ...

from Drammen to Randsfjorden. He presented the results of the investigation on 31 May 1858, which concluded that the terrain between Drammen and Randsfjorden was favorable for a rail line. Pihl thereupon proposed a rail line from Randsfjorden with a branch line to

Hen Hen commonly refers to a female animal: a female chicken, other gallinaceous bird, any type of bird in general, or a lobster. It is also a slang term for a woman. Hen or Hens may also refer to: Places Norway *Hen, Buskerud, a village in Ringer ...

. He argued with forester Thorvald Meiddell, who wanted to construct a canal rather than a rail line. In a meeting on 12 September 1859 in the Drammen chairmanship, the rail line solution was decided upon. On 6 March 1863, the final decision was made, with six against three votes. It was also decided to make a government loan of .

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

passed the construction of the rail line on 11 June 1863, with 65 against 44 votes. The construction of the Randsfjord Line was begun on 4 December 1863, and, on 1 September 1866, the line was finished to Vikersund. Two years later, the entire line to

Randsfjord Station Randsfjord Station ( no, Randsfjord stasjon) was a railway station at located on the west bank of the south of the lake of Randsfjorden in Jevnaker, Norway. Passengers could transfer to steam ship for transport on Randsfjorden. History The st ...

was opened. A celebration took place at the station, where King

Charles XV Charles XV also Carl (''Carl Ludvig Eugen''); Swedish: ''Karl XV'' and Norwegian: ''Karl IV'' (3 May 1826 – 18 September 1872) was King of Sweden (''Charles XV'') and Norway, there often referred to as Charles IV, from 8 July 1859 until his dea ...

with his family took part. On 1 December 1867 Skjærdalen and

Tyristrand Tyristrand is a village in Ringerike municipality in Buskerud county, Norway. Background Tyristrand parish was designated a municipality following a split from Hole on 1 July 1916. The municipality of Hole made been established on 1 January 1 ...

were connected to the line and finally on 12 October 1868

Hønefoss Station Hønefoss Station ( no, Hønefoss stasjon) is a railway station located at Hønefoss in Ringerike, Norway. The station is located at the intersection between the Bergen Line, the Randsfjord Line and the Roa–Hønefoss Line. Hønefoss is served b ...

opened and the line could stretch all the way to Randsfjorden. The line was the fifth railway line to be built in Norway. When the Bergen Line was built a new line between Roa on Gjøvikbanen and Hønefoss was opened in 1909, providing two different lines between Hønefoss and Oslo.

Images

File:Honefoss-stasjon-1900-corr.jpg,

around 1900 File:Vikersund station.jpg,

Vikersund Station Vikersund Station ( no, Vikersund stasjon) is a railway station located at the village of Vikersund in Modum, Norway. At Vikersund there is a junction with the Randsfjorden Line (''Randsfjordbane'') on which Norges Statsbaner operates some expr ...

File:Hokksund station.jpg,

Hokksund Station Hokksund Station ( no, Hokksund stasjon) is located at the village of Hokksund in Øvre Eiker, Norway on the Sørlandet Line. The station is served by local trains between Kongsberg via Oslo to Eidsvoll operated by the Vy as well as express tra ...

File:Mjøndalen Railway Station TRS 061106 003.jpg, Mjøndalen Station File:Drammen1.jpg, Drammen Station File:Hen stasjon.jpg,

Hen Station Hen commonly refers to a female animal: a female chicken, other gallinaceous bird, any type of bird in general, or a lobster. It is also a slang term for a woman. Hen or Hens may also refer to: Places Norway *Hen, Buskerud, a village in Ringer ...

References

Bibliography

* {{Coord, 59.9693, 9.9981, region:NO-30, format=dms, display=title Railway lines in Innlandet Railway lines in Viken Railway lines opened in 1866 Electric railways in Norway 1866 establishments in Norway Sørlandet Line 3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Norway

History

Images

See also

References

Bibliography