SM91 is the Norwegian designation for a tram type which operated on 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 ...
until 2002. The trams were imported from
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
, where they had originally run on the
Gothenburg Tramway under the designation
M25. The trams were originally delivered to the Gothenburg Tramway between 1958 and 1961. A total of 36 trams were eventually exported to
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 ...
,
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 ...
, numbered 264 to 299.
History
125 trams were built by
Hägglund for Göteborgs Spårvägar, where they were designated M25 and given the serial numbers 501–625. They were built between 1958 and 1962. Following the decision to change from left to right-side driving on
Dagen H
(H-day), today usually called "" (), was 3 September 1967, the day Sweden switched from driving on the left-hand side of the road to the right. on 3 September 1967, the tram company ordered an additional 130 trams in the
M28 and
M29 series. The M25s were then sent back to Hägglunds to be converted to right-hand driving, with doors on both sides. Two trams were then driven back-to-back, and the direction of the trams could simply be reversed on Dagen H.
Oslo
In the early 1990s, the
Ring 3 bypass highway was being upgraded, and this caused a disruption to the
Grünerløkka–Torshov Line 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 .Al ...
where it crosses this highway. To continue operations on the line, trams had to turn without a
turning loop
A balloon loop, turning loop, or reversing loop ( North American Terminology) allows a rail vehicle or train to reverse direction without having to shunt or stop. Balloon loops can be useful for passenger trains and unit freight trains.
Bal ...
, but the company did not have enough trams which could run this way. However, Gothenburg had a number of surplus M25 trams capable of running back to back trams. The trams were therefore purchased by Oslo at the token price of
NOK
Nok is a village in Jaba Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Nigeria. The village is an archeological site.
Archaeology
The discovery of terracotta figurines at this location caused its name to be used for the Nok culture, of which these ...
1 each, although upgrading the trams for Oslo use cost NOK 200,000. The rear travelling car in a back-to-back set had to be closed during a trip as its doors were facing the wrong side of the road.
![SM91 Sagene Church](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8e/SM91_Sagene_Church.jpg)
The trams were phased out as they were replaced with the new Italian articulated trams (
SL95
SL95 is a series of 32 low-floor, articulated trams operated on the Oslo Tramway. The series was built by Italian rail manufacturer Ansaldo/Firema, later known as AnsaldoBreda (now Hitachi Rail Italy), and delivered between 1999 and 2004. Capaci ...
).
2001 accident
Safety concerns regarding the SM91 were raised after a fatal accident during the evening rush hour at
Holbergs plass on 16 January 2001. A mother with a
stroller
Various methods of transporting children have been used in different cultures and times. These methods include baby carriages (prams in British English), infant car seats, portable bassinets (carrycots), strollers (pushchairs), slings, backpacks ...
caught her foot by the tram doors as she was entering, and was dragged behind the tram when it started to move. The injuries she sustained were fatal.
It was later found that the tram driver had reported trouble with the tram's doors several times in the hours before the accident. Four minutes before the accident, she had requested a new tram, but was denied one because there were no more trams available.
Prior to the fatality, there had been several incidents with passengers getting caught in the doors as they were carrying strollers, although in the previous incidents the tram had been able to stop before the situation became more serious.
In the aftermath of the accident, Oslo Sporveier stopped coupling the trams together in two-car trains and ran them only individually. The safeguards against people getting trapped in the doors were also replaced, and emergency handles were installed. Both the tram company and the female 30-year-old tram driver were charged with
negligent homicide
Negligent homicide is a criminal charge brought against a person who, through criminal negligence, allows another person to die.
Examples include the crash of Aeroperu Flight 603 near Lima, Peru. The accident was caused by a piece of duct tape ...
.
In the
Oslo District Court
Oslo District Court ( no, Oslo tingrett) is a district court located in Oslo, Norway. This court is based at the Oslo Courthouse in the city of Oslo. The court serves the entire city of Oslo and the court is subordinate to the Borgarting Court of ...
, both the company and the driver were acquitted on the homicide charge, but found guilty on lesser counts. On appeal, the tram company was finally convicted in
Borgarting Court of Appeal
The Borgarting Court of Appeal ( no, Borgarting lagmannsrett) is one of six intermediate courts of appeal in the Kingdom of Norway. The Court is located in the city of Oslo. The court has jurisdiction over the counties of Oslo and western Viken. ...
and ordered to pay a fine of NOK 5 million; this was the first time a company had been found guilty of homicide in Norway. The conviction against tram driver on the lesser counts regarding failure to demonstrate due care in the traffic were upheld, and she received a 30-day
suspended jail sentence.
Specifications
The M25 Class was built by
Hägglunds
BAE Systems AB is a Swedish defence company and a subsidiary of BAE Systems Land & Armaments, whose ultimate parent is the British defence contractor BAE Systems. The company is a holding company for Land Systems Hägglunds AB and BAE Systems Bofo ...
as 125 single-car trams from 1958 to 1962. The
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 ...
trams are long, wide and weigh . They are equipped with two
bogie
A bogie ( ) (in some senses called a truck in North American English) is a chassis or framework that carries a wheelset, attached to a vehicle—a modular subassembly of wheels and axles. Bogies take various forms in various modes of transp ...
s, each with two
axle
An axle or axletree is a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear. On wheeled vehicles, the axle may be fixed to the wheels, rotating with them, or fixed to the vehicle, with the wheels rotating around the axle. In the former case, bearing ...
s, giving a
Bo'Bo'
B-B and Bo-Bo are the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and British classifications of wheel arrangement for railway locomotives with four axles in two individual bogies. They are equivalent to the B′B′ and Bo′Bo′ classifications in ...
wheel arrangement. The axle distance is , the bogie-centre distance is and the wheel diameter is .
Each tram had four motors totalling in power output, giving a maximum speed of . The trams seated 38 people and stood 38 more.
References
{{Oslo Tramway
Oslo Tramway stock
600 V DC multiple units
Multiple units of Norway