The Jæren Commuter Rail ( no, Jærbanen) is a
commuter train service operated along the westernmost part of the
Sørland Line in
Jæren
Jæren is a traditional district in Rogaland county, Norway. The other districts in Rogaland are Dalane, Ryfylke, and Haugalandet. Jæren is one of the 15 districts that comprise Western Norway.
At about , Jæren is the largest flat lowland a ...
,
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 ...
. It is operated by
Go-Ahead Norge with nine
Class 72 electric multiple units. The service acts as a commuter rail connecting
Stavanger
Stavanger (, , US usually , ) is a city and municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the administrative center of Rogaland county. T ...
to its suburbs, including
Sandnes, and to towns further south, in
Klepp
Klepp is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Jæren. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kleppe. Other villages in Klepp include Klepp stasjon, Orre, Orstad, P ...
,
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
,
HÃ¥
Hå is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is the southernmost municipality in the traditional district of Jæren. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Varhaug. Other villages in Hå include Brusand, Hæen, ...
and
Eigersund
Eigersund is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is in the traditional district of Dalane. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Egersund. The town was known for its pottery factory (closed in 1979) and it is ...
. Although passenger services have operated along the lines since 1878, the commuter train service was inaugurated in 1992 with a significant increase of service, using existing rolling stock. Ridership of the system increased from 3.2 million in 2012 to 5 million in 2019.
The service runs from
Stavanger Station to
Egersund Station, a distance of . It has four hourly services from Stavanger to
Sandnes Station, of which two continue to
Nærbø Station and one to Egersund. The section from Stavanger to Sandnes is
double track, while the rest is
single track. The infrastructure is owned by the
Norwegian National Rail Administration and the line is also used by intercity and freight trains. Several proposed upgrades to the system have been made, such as a branch along the
Ålgård Line, a branch to
Stavanger Airport, Sola and reestablishing double track from Sandnes to Egersund.
Route

The commuter rail service runs along the full length of the Jæren Line, the old name of the section of the Sørland Line from Stavanger to Egersund. The line is
standard gauge,
electrified
Electrification is the process of powering by electricity and, in many contexts, the introduction of such power by changing over from an earlier power source.
The broad meaning of the term, such as in the history of technology, economic histor ...
at and owned by the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The line starts as
double track at
Stavanger Station, which is located in the central business district of
Stavanger
Stavanger (, , US usually , ) is a city and municipality in Norway. It is the fourth largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the administrative center of Rogaland county. T ...
and is the terminal station of the Sørland Line. The station is manned, serves intercity trains and is 10 minutes from the city's ferry terminal.
Paradis Station is from Stavanger and serves the residential areas of
Storhaug and
VÃ¥land. Around the station there will be established new office real estate. The station is within walking distance of
Stavanger University Hospital
Stavanger University Hospital (Norwegian: ''Stavanger Universitetssjukehus'', SUS) is located in the neighborhood of VÃ¥land in Stavanger, Norway.
Stavanger University Hospital is one of Norway's largest hospitals with more than 7500 employees. T ...
and
Godalen Upper Secondary School, and is adjacent to the offices of the
County Governor.
Mariero Station
Mariero Station ( no, Mariero holdeplass) is a railway station in Stavanger Municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The station is located at Mariero in the city of Stavanger, about from the main Stavanger Station. It is served by the Jæren ...
is from Stavanger and serves a mixed residential and commercial area, including
Hetland Upper Secondary School
Hetland is a former municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The municipality existed from 1838 until 1965 when it was dissolved. The municipality included the Stavanger Peninsula and the land surrounding both sides of the Gandsfjorden, but ...
.
Jåttåvågen Station
Jåttåvågen Station ( no, Jåttåvågen holdeplass) is a railway station located in the municipality of Stavanger in Rogaland county, Norway. The station is located at Jåtten in the city of Stavanger, about from the main Stavanger Station. I ...
serves a new neighborhood and is within a minutes walk of
Viking Stadion, the home ground of
Tippeligaen side
Viking FK,
Jåttå Upper Secondary School
Jåttå Upper Secondary School ( no, Jåttå videregående skole) is an upper secondary school in Jåtten, Stavanger, Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of wh ...
and the future offices of
Aker Solutions.
Gausel Station is located from from Stavanger and serves a mixed commercial and residential area. In addition to being next to the offices of
NOKAS, the station is the main interchange with buses towards
Forus, which contains the offices of companies such as
Statoil
Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. ...
,
Telenor
Telenor ASA ( or ) is a Norway, Norwegian majority State-owned enterprise, state-owned multinational corporation, multinational telecommunications company headquartered at Fornebu in Bærum, close to Oslo. It is one of the List of mobile network ...
and
BP, and Stavanger Airport, Sola.

Sandnes Station (previously
andnes Sentrum Station "Sandnes Center") is the first station located within
Sandnes, and is located on a viaduct above the city center. Located from Stavanger, it is also served by intercity trains and staffed. The station is the southern end of the double track.
Skeiane Station (previously
andnes station is from Stavanger and is located slightly south of city center of Sandnes. Some of the commuter trains terminate at Sandnes.
Ganddal Station
Ganddal Station ( no, Ganddal stasjon) is a railway station in the western part of the municipality of Sandnes in Rogaland county, Norway. The station is located just south of the centre of the city of Sandnes in the Ganddal borough. It sit ...
is from Stavanger and serves the mixed residential and industrial area of
Ganddal. The Ålgård Line branches off at the station.
Øksnevadporten Station
Øksnevadporten Station or Øksnavadporten Station ( no, Øksnevadporten holdeplass) is a railway station located in Kvernaland in Klepp municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The station is located on the Sørland Line. The station is served b ...
is the first in
Klepp
Klepp is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Jæren. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Kleppe. Other villages in Klepp include Klepp stasjon, Orre, Orstad, P ...
and is located from Stavanger.
Klepp Station
Klepp Station ( no, Klepp stasjon) is a railway station in the municipality of Klepp in Rogaland county, Norway. The station is located in the village of Klepp stasjon, about east of the municipal centre of Kleppe. The station on the Sørlande ...
is located from Stavanger and serves the municipal center of Klepp.
Bryne Station is the only station in
Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...
and located at
Bryne
Bryne () is a town in Time municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The city is the administrative centre of the municipality of Time and it is also one of the 50 largest towns/cities in Norway. Bryne's location in the region of Stavanger/Sand ...
, from Stavanger. The station is staffed and also serves intercity trains.
Nærbø Station is the first station in
HÃ¥
Hå is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is the southernmost municipality in the traditional district of Jæren. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Varhaug. Other villages in Hå include Brusand, Hæen, ...
and serves the municipal center of
Nærbø. Some commuter trains terminate at Nærbø.
Varhaug Station
Varhaug Station ( no, Varhaug stasjon) is a railway station located at Varhaug in Hå, Norway on the Sørlandet Line. The station is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail between Stavanger
Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a c ...
is located from Stavanger, while
Vigrestad Station
Vigrestad Station ( no, Vigrestad stasjon) is a railway station located at Vigrestad in Hå, Norway on Sørland Line. The station is served by the Jæren Commuter Rail between Stavanger
Stavanger (, , American English, US usually , ) is a ci ...
is located from Stavanger.
Brusand Station
Brusand Station ( no, Brusand stasjon) is a railway station located at Brusand in the municipality of Hå in Rogaland county, Norway. It is located on the Sørland Line. The station is served by Jæren Commuter Rail between Stavanger and Egersund. ...
serves the residential area of
Brusand
Brusand is a village in Hå municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The small village is located on a small isthmus of land between the lake Bjåvatnet and the North Sea. The village sits along the Sørlandet Line (traditionally called the Jær ...
and is located from Stavanger.
Ogna Station serves the residential area of
Ogna and is located from Stavanger.
Sirevåg Station is located from Stavanger and serves the fishing village of
Sirevåg
Sirevåg is a village in Hå municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The village is located in the southeastern part of the municipality, about northwest of the village of Hellvik in neighboring Eigersund
Eigersund is a municipality in Rog ...
.
Hellvik Station is the first station in
Eigersund
Eigersund is a municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. It is in the traditional district of Dalane. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Egersund. The town was known for its pottery factory (closed in 1979) and it is ...
and located from Stavanger.
Egersund Station is the terminal station of the line, and all remaining commuter trains stop there. The station is staffed and also served by intercity trains, and has correspondence with buses. The station located from Stavanger is about 10 minutes north of the city center of
Egersund
Egersund is a town in Eigersund municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The town is located along the southwestern coast of Norway, about south of the city of Stavanger. The town is situated along a strait which separates the mainland from t ...
.
Service

The operating deficits are covered through subsidies by the
Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications. The trackage and other infrastructure is owned by the government agency Bane NOR (Railway Infrastructure Company), while the
rolling stock
The term rolling stock in the rail transport industry refers to railway vehicles, including both powered and unpowered vehicles: for example, locomotives, freight and passenger cars (or coaches), and non-revenue cars. Passenger vehicles can ...
is owned and operated by Go-Ahead Nordic and CargoNet. The service between Stavanger and Sandnes operate with a fixed schedule every 15 minutes. Of the trains to Sandnes, half continue onwards to Nærbø, giving a 30-minute headway. One train per hour operate all the way to Egersund. On weekends and late evenings, there is a reduced service. Travel time from Stavanger to Sandnes is 19 minutes, from Stavanger to Nærbø is 37 minutes, and from Stavanger to Egersund is 1 hour and 7 minutes.
Rolling stock

Class 72 is a series of 36 four-car electric multiple units built by
AnsaldoBreda
Hitachi Rail Italy S.p.A. is a multinational rolling stock manufacturer company based in Pistoia, Italy. Formerly AnsaldoBreda S.p.A., a subsidiary of state-owned Finmeccanica, the company was sold in 2015 to Hitachi Rail of Japan. After the ...
. The units are permanently coupled together using
Jacobs bogies. Each unit has a power output of , allowing a top speed of . The trains are long and weigh , and have seating for 310 passengers and one toilet. The trains have better
accessibility than the older units and unlike their predecessors are equipped with an electronic public information system.
Nine of the units are used on the Jæren Commuter Rail,
while the remaining 25 units are used on the
Oslo Commuter Rail.
Retired
Class 69 is a series of 88 two and three-car electric multiple units built by
Strømmens Værksted between 1970 and 1993. A motor car has a power output of , allowing a speed of . Each car is long, with motor cars weighing and end cars weighing down to . Typical seating capacity is 96 passengers in the motor cars and 112 passengers in the end cars.
[Aspenberg (2001): 170] The class was delivered in four versions, named A through D. After the initial delivery of fifteen 69As in 1970 and 1971, twenty 69Bs were delivered in 1974 and 1975. These were designed to operate on longer sections and were equipped with only one door per car. This turned out to extend stopping time too much, and the C and D versions were delivered with two doors per car. From 1975 to 1977, NSB took delivery of fourteen 69Cs and from 1983 to 1993 thirty-nine 69Ds. The latter is distinguishable because of its different front. NSB operates both two- and three-car sets, and up to three units can be run in multiple, allowing NSB to operate any train length from two to nine cars. Eighty-two units remain in service; although they have been retired from the Jæren Commuter Rail, NSB still uses them on the Oslo Commuter Rail, the
Bergen Commuter Rail
Bergen Commuter Rail, sometimes called Vossebanen, is a commuter rail service between Bergen and Arna, Voss and Myrdal, Norway. It is operated by Vy using Stadler FLIRT electric multiple units. It runs on the mainline Bergen Line and all servic ...
and the
Arendal Line.
History

The Jæren Line opened as a narrow gauge railway between Stavanger and Egersund on 1 March 1878. The railway was extended from Egersund to Flekkefjord on 1 November 1904 as the
Flekkefjord Line. On 21 December 1924, the Jæren Line's only branch opened, the Ålgård Line from Ganddal to Ålgård. On 1 March 1944, the Jæren Line became part of the Sørland Line, when the line opened between
Sira and
Kristiansand
Kristiansand is a seaside resort city and Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Agder county, Norway. The city is the fifth-largest and the municipality the sixth-largest in Norway, with a population of around 112,000 as of January 2020, f ...
and the Jæren Line was converted to
standard gauge. The Sørland Line from Egersund to Stavanger was opened as electric on 3 June 1956. This resulted in
Class 65 and
Class 67 electric multiple units being used on local trains on the line. In 1960, the services were replaced by
Class 68 units. The section from Stavanger to Sandnes became the first part of the
Norwegian railway network
The Norwegian railway system comprises 4,109 km of (standard gauge) track of which 2,644 km is electrified and 274 km double track. There are 697 tunnels and 2,760 bridges.
The Norwegian Railway Directorate manages the rail ...
, after the
Ofoten Line, to be centrally controlled. The
centralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control (CTC) is a form of railway signalling that originated in North America. CTC consolidates train routing decisions that were previously carried out by local signal operators or the train crews themselves. The system con ...
opened from Stavanger to Sandnes on 20 March 1964, and from Sandnes to Egersund on 7 July. The whole line received partial
automatic train control
Automatic train control (ATC) is a general class of train protection systems for railways that involves a speed control mechanism in response to external inputs. For example, a system could effect an emergency brake application if the driver ...
on 31 December 1986.
The commuter rail system was introduced from 1 January 1992, after an agreement between NSB,
Rogaland County Municipality and the six municipalities along the line. NSB introduced new Class 69 multiple units, while the county municipality introduced a fare coordination with the corresponding bus services. The increase in service involved 15 departures per direction per day, and the travel time from Stavanger to Egersund was reduced from 80 to 55 minutes.
In addition, NSB started with a half-hour
headway
Headway is the distance or duration between vehicles in a transit system measured in space or time. The ''minimum headway'' is the shortest such distance or time achievable by a system without a reduction in the speed of vehicles. The precise defi ...
between Stavanger and Sandnes. A new station, Sandnes Sentrum, was opened in the city center of Sandnes at the time the new service started. NSB stated that the goal was to increase the daily ridership from 2,900 to 5,000 passengers by 1994.
The stations were also upgraded, including new sheds.
The
Scanet
Scanet is a defunct, analog train radio system used by the Norwegian State Railways (NSB) and later the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The system was developed by Ascom Radiocom and was installed on the primary railways in Norway betwe ...
train radio system was installed between 1993 and 1996.

The service was a success, and NSB received a 112% increase in ridership the first year. This resulted in the company introducing a similar service between
Trondheim
Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, an ...
and
Innherred, the
Trøndelag Commuter Rail, in 1993. In 1993, NSB won
Statens Byggeskikkpris, among other things for the new sheds on the Jæren Line.
By 1995, ridership was up 150% from before the service started. In 1997, NSB announced that they would order 36 new electric multiple units, which would among other things replace the aging trains on the Jæren Commuter Rail. The new Class 72 trains were put into service on 8 August 2002, several years behind schedule. In April 2004, the rail administration opened
Jåttå Station
Jåttå Station ( no, Jåttå holdeplass) was a railway station located at Jåttå in Stavanger municipality in Rogaland county, Norway. The station was served by the Jæren Commuter Rail between Stavanger and Egersund. The station was located ...
, which was located close to
Viking Stadion, the new home ground of
Tippeligaen side
Viking FK.
By 2005, ridership had increased to 2.5 million per year, up 278% from 1991, giving a 7% market share in the corridor. To further increase capacity and regularity, the Norwegian National Rail Administration decided to rebuild the section from Stavanger to Sandnes to double track. At the same time, a new freight terminal was to be built
at Ganddal, meaning that the section would only have to be shared with intercity trains. The upgrade involved closing Hillevåg Station, and building three new stations: Paradis, Jåttåvågen and Gausel. Construction was started in 2006 and was estimated to be completed by 2009. It was estimated to cost 2.2 billion
Norwegian krone
The krone (, abbreviation: kr (also NKr for distinction); code: NOK), plural ''kroner'', is currency of the Kingdom of Norway (including Svalbard). Traditionally known as the Norwegian crown in English. It is nominally subdivided into 100 ' ...
.
From April to November 2009, the section from Ganddal to Stavanger was closed while the last part of the upgrade was completed. The new line was opened on 16 November 2009 and from 14 December, the 15-minute headway was introduced between Stavanger and Sandnes.
In October 2018,
Go-Ahead Norway entered into an agreement with Norwegian Railway Directorate to deliver train services on Sørlandsbanen, Arendalsbanen and Jærbanen from 15 December 2019 (a service titled ''Sørtoget'', "Southern Train"). The company sought to increase the frequency of trains on the Jæren Commuter rail.
Future

The National Rail Administration has developed a plan for possible expansion of the commuter rail. The main possibilities have been discussed: rebuilding the section from Sandnes to Egersund to double track,
[Norwegian National Rail Administration (2009a): 31–35] taking back into use the Ålgård Line, which branches off at Ganddal,
[Norwegian National Rail Administration (2009a): 52–56] and building a new branch from south of Gausel to Stavanger Airport, Sola.
[Norwegian National Rail Administration (2009a): 57–58] An alternative to several of the options is a light rail, which may or may not be built as a
tram-train
A tram-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline trains. This al ...
, which would use parts of the existing double track between Stavanger and Sandnes.
The Ålgård Line is a long railway which branches from the Sørland Line at Ganddal. It runs via
Foss-Eikeland and
Figgjo to
Ålgård, and was opened on 20 December 1924. Passenger services were terminated on 1 November 1955, making it the line with the most frequent passenger traffic in Norway to be closed. Freight trains operated until 1988. The first are used for freight trains to access a cement factory. The line has officially been closed, but has not been abandoned. The National Rail Administration retains ownership and can in the future renovate the line for operation.
The annual traffic potential for the Ålgård Line is 600,000 passengers. Plans call for stations at
Vagle, Figgjo,
Kongeparken and Ålgård. It is possible to operate the trains that currently terminate at Sandnes to Ålgård without new infrastructure investments to the Sørland Line. However, the line would need a full upgrade, including new tracks, electric system and signaling. Ålgård is also a good 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
European Route E39
European route E39 is the designation of a north–south road in Norway and Denmark from Klett, just south of Trondheim, to Aalborg via Bergen, Stavanger and Kristiansand. In total, there are nine ferries, more than any other single road in ...
.
A branch to Sola has been considered to allow the trains to operate to
Sola and the airport. The line would branch from the Sørland Line south of Gausel, and be built so trains from the branch could run both northwards and southwards. Proposed stations include the airport,
Solakrossen,
Forus West,
Statoil
Equinor ASA (formerly Statoil and StatoilHydro) is a Norwegian state-owned multinational energy company headquartered in Stavanger. It is primarily a petroleum company, operating in 36 countries with additional investments in renewable energy. ...
's head office and possibly the shopping center
Kvadrat. This would give a travel time of 17 minutes from the airport to the city center, and 10 minutes from the airport to Sandnes. This route has, however, also been proposed as part of the light rail system. It would give about 2.5 million annual passengers.

Plans have been made that would either double or triple the frequency on all the services on the existing commuter rail network. However, increased frequency south of Sandnes will require double track. Should the frequency be doubled, double track would have to be built to where the current service to Nærbø terminates. Plans call for these trains to possibly be extended to either Varhaug or Vigrestad. Should the frequency be tripled, double track would be needed all the way to Egersund. Parts of the Jæren Line is straight enough to permit speeds between . However, several shorter parts need to be rebuilt to allow this, particularly between Egersund and Ogna, and from Bryne to Ganddal. In particular, the section from Ogna to Egersund would probably have to follow an all-new route, should it be rebuilt to double track. The effect of higher maximum speeds is greatest for intercity trains, as the commuter trains have so frequent stops they have little to gain from the increased speeds.
When the Jæren Line was built, the station in Egersund was located in the city center. With the opening of the Sørland Line, the station was moved north of the city center.
Egersund Station has been proposed moved back to its old location for the commuter rail, giving Egersund two stations: one for commuter trains and one for regional trains. The right-of-way still exists for this route, making construction easy. A new Sørland Line has also been proposed, which would run south instead of north from Egersund. This would mean that a city center location for Egersund Station would be better for intercity trains as well.
[Norwegian National Rail Administration (2009a): 61]
Rogaland County Municipality is in the planning process of building a light rail in Greater Stavanger. The initial plans call for a Y-shaped service which could be operational by 2018, with possibilities for further expansion. As of 2010, the plans call for a line from Stavanger to Sandnes, and a branch to the airport. The travel time from Sandnes to Stavanger would be 29 minutes, and is therefore a supplement to the commuter rail. The light rail would have interchange with the light rail at Stavanger, Paradis, Jåttåvågen, Gausel and Sandnes Sentrum. Several new branches of the light rail have been proposed for later construction.
References
Bibliography
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Jaeren Commuter Rail
Public transport in Rogaland
Rail transport in Rogaland
Commuter rail systems in Norway
Sørlandet Line
1992 establishments in Norway
Railway services introduced in 1992