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The VÃ¥lerenga Line (), also known as Helsfyr Line and Etterstad Line, is an abandoned line of the
Oslo Tramway The Oslo tram network (, 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 maintain the trac ...
of
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...
. It branched from the Gamlebyen Line in Schweigaards gate and ran into the neighborhoods of
Vålerenga Vålerenga () is a neighbourhood in the city of Oslo, Norway, belonging to the borough of Gamle Oslo. Vålerenga is located between the neighbourhoods of Gamlebyen, Jordal, Ensjø, Etterstad and Lodalen. Vålerenga is in particular known for i ...
,
Etterstad Etterstad () is a neighborhood in Oslo, located between the river Alna and Strømsveien, north of Vålerenga. It was incorporated into Oslo in 1946, two years before the merger of Oslo and Aker. The area is mainly residential. History The ar ...
and
Helsfyr Helsfyr () is a residential and industrial neighborhood in Oslo. It is located in Oslo's East End, in the administrative borough of Gamle Oslo Gamle Oslo is a List of boroughs of Oslo, borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The name means "Old O ...
. The line followed the streets of Schweigaards gate, St. Halvars gate, Enebakkveien, one direction each in Vålerenggata and Strømsveien, and Etterstadgata. The line continued as a suburban
light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...
as the
Østensjø Line The Østensjø Line () is a line on the Oslo Metro which runs from Brynseng (station), Brynseng to Mortensrud (station), Mortensrud. It further shares track with the Lambertseter Line along the section from Tøyen (station), Tøyen to Brynseng. ...
and the
Lambertseter Line The Lambertseter Line () is a line on the Oslo Metro which runs from Brynseng (station), Brynseng to Bergkrystallen (station), Bergkrystallen. It further shares track with the Østensjø Line along the section from Tøyen (station), Tøyen to B ...
. The line was established by
Kristiania Sporveisselskab A/S Kristiania Sporveisselskab or KSS, nicknamed the Green Tramway (), was an operator of part of the Oslo Tramway from 1875 to 1924. The company was established in 1874 and started with horsecar operations on the Ullevål Hageby Line, Gamlebyen ...
(KSS) on 3 May 1900. In 1923 the first part of the Østensjø Line, owned by
Akersbanerne A/S Akersbanerne was a municipal owned company that operated tramways in the former Municipality of Aker in current Oslo, Norway. The company was established in 1917, and opened the suburban Østensjø Line tramway in 1926; it took over the maj ...
, opened, as did KSS's VÃ¥lerenga Depot was opened. Ownership of the line passed to
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 1 ...
in 1924. Two years later the Østensjø Line open, but not until 1937, when
Bærumsbanen A/S Bærumsbanen was a tram company that operated the Lillaker-, Kolsås and Østensjø Line of the Oslo Tramway, Norway, from 1924 to 1971 when the company became part of Oslo Sporveier. History In 1924 the two street tram operators in Oslo, K ...
took over operations, was there provided a through service. The Østensjø Line became part of the
Oslo Metro The Oslo Metro ( 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, with a total leng ...
in 1966. With the reduction in traffic, the VÃ¥lerenga Line was closed on 23 June 1968, as part of a citywide gradual closure of the tramway.


Route

The Vålerenga Line was a branch of the Gamlebyen Line, which served the neighborhoods of Vålerenga, Helsfyr and Etterstad. The Vålerenga Line branched from the Gamlebyen Line in Schewigaards gate and continued along it before following St. Halvars gate, Enebakkveien, Vålerenggata and finally Etterstadgata.Fristad: 37 From 1923 part of the tracks were rearranged, so that the upward tracks (bound northeast) went through Vålerengagata, while the downward bound tracks placed in Strømsveien. The line was also extended over the
Gjøvik Line The Gjøvik Line () 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 Line was one of t ...
.Fristad: 137 The line originally had its terminus in Etterstadgata, but from 1926 it was placed at Grensen, on the municipal border. From there the line continued as the Østensjø Line as a suburban light rail. Kristiania Sporveisselskab and later Oslo Sporveier operated Vålerenga Depot in conjunction with the line. It served as the main depot for trams which were serving the eastern lines. From 1927 it was also used as a bus garage.


History

The Gamlebyen Line—until 1925 known as the Oslo Line—was one of the original horsecar lines in Oslo, opened by KSS on 6 October 1875. The Vålerenga area and its vicinity were incorporated into the municipality of Christiania (today Oslo) in 1878 and the areas experience a growth. During the late 1890s and early 1900s Oslo experienced a rapid expansion of its tram networks. Kristiania Sporveisselskab carried out an electrification of its system from 1897; this was completed on 14 January 1900 when the Oslo Line was finished converted. During this period KSS carried out the construction of two branches of the Oslo Line. The Vålerenga Line opened on 3 May and the Kampen Line on 6 June. The Vålerenga Line was routed through the city center and connected to the Vestbanen Line. From 1915 it became part of Line 8, which linked to the Sagene Line. KSS opened a depot in Hedmarksgata along the Vålerenga Line in February 1923. Plans for a suburban
light rail Light rail (or light rail transit, abbreviated to LRT) is a form of passenger urban rail transit that uses rolling stock derived from tram technology National Conference of the Transportation Research Board while also having some features from ...
into the neighboring municipality of Aker were launched in 1917. It materialized in the
Østensjø Østensjø () is a borough of the city of Oslo, Norway. The borough is in the southeastern part of Oslo. It is well known for its proximity to the forested area of Østmarka, a popular resort and hiking area for the citizens of Oslo and Løren ...
, for which construction commenced in February 1922. The line was built was an extension of the VÃ¥lerenga Line. However, it was built by
Akersbanerne A/S Akersbanerne was a municipal owned company that operated tramways in the former Municipality of Aker in current Oslo, Norway. The company was established in 1917, and opened the suburban Østensjø Line tramway in 1926; it took over the maj ...
and KSS. The first part of the line, from Etterstad to Bryn, was opened on 18 December 1923. Initially it was served by that Line 17 was rerouted to serve the Vålerenga Line, and every other service ran all the way to Bryn. As part of the opening the tracks were from 18 February 1923 rearranged so that northeast-bound trains ran through Vålerengagata and in the other direction through Strømsveien. KSS merged in May 1924 to create
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 1 ...
and it took over services on the Vålerenga Line. The Østensjø Line was extended to
Oppsal Oppsal is a suburb in the borough of Østensjø in Oslo, Norway. The modern history of Oppsal starts with villas and summer homes built during the Interwar period. The Oslo Tramway was extended to Oppsal in 1926. Oppsal was developed as a plann ...
in 1926. However, Oslo Sporveier and Akersbanerne could not come to terms regarding the lease of the VÃ¥lerenga Line. The issue was driven by the lack of a suitable
turning loop A balloon loop, turning loop, or reversing loop (Glossary of North American railway terms, North American Terminology) allows a rail vehicle or train to reverse direction without having to Shunting (rail), shunt or stop. Balloon loops can be u ...
with free capacity in the city center. Instead, Akersbanerne decided to operate the trams to Etterstad, where there would be transfer, without transfer tickets, between the two tram companies. From 1927 the line was served by trams 6 and 16.Fristad: 69 The situation was resolved from 4 January 1937, when
Bærumsbanen A/S Bærumsbanen was a tram company that operated the Lillaker-, Kolsås and Østensjø Line of the Oslo Tramway, Norway, from 1924 to 1971 when the company became part of Oslo Sporveier. History In 1924 the two street tram operators in Oslo, K ...
took over operations on the Østensjø Line. It already operated the
Lilleaker Line The Lilleaker Line () is a suburban tramway from Skøyen in Oslo westwards to Jar,_Norway, Jar, Bærum in Norway. It is operated by Line 13 from Ljabru tram stop, Ljabru to Bekkestua (station), Bekkestua of the Oslo Tramway, operated by Oslo Spor ...
in a similar fashion on the other end of town, which also suffered under the lack of turning capacity through town. The predominantly used
Gullfisk Class B and Class E, normally referred to as ''Gullfisk'' (Norwegian language, Norwegian for "goldfish"), were a class of 46 trams built by Strømmens Værksted and Skabo Jernbanevognfabrikk for Oslo Sporveier and Bærumsbanen of Oslo, Norway, in ...
trams on their service. Following the 1948 merger of the municipalities of Oslo and Aker, it was decided that the Nordstrand area in the former Aker would be opened to large-scale construction of housing. To aid transport, the city council voted on 9 December 1954 to build the Lambertseter Line from Bryn to Bergkrystallen. At the same time it was decided that both the Lambertseter and the Østensjø Lines would become part of the
Oslo Metro The Oslo Metro ( 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, with a total leng ...
. Built and operated by Oslo Sporveier, services commenced on 10 April 1957 using
SM53 SM53, originally designed MBO and colloquially known as Høka, were a class of 58 trams and 50 trailers built by Høka and Hägglund & Söner, Hägglund for Oslo Sporveier. The units were used on the Norway's Oslo Tramway from 1952 until 2000. T ...
trams. The city council voted in 1960 to gradually close the tramway and instead rely on diesel buses and the metro. The Østensjø Line was being converted to metro standard and would be connected to the new
Common Tunnel The Common Tunnel (), sometimes called the Common Line (), is a long tunnel of the Oslo Metro which runs through the Sentrum, Oslo, city center of Oslo, Norway. The name derives from the fact that all five lines of the metro use the tunnel, whi ...
. It would therefore no longer need the Vålerenga Line to reach the city center. This resulted in a series of tram lines being closed during the 1960s.Fristad: 121 The Lambertseter Line was closed for tram traffic on 18 May 1966 and opened as part of the metro five days later. The Østensjø Line was closed during the evening of 25 October 1967 and similarly converted in three days. Oslo Sporveier continued to serve the Vålerenga Line until 24 June 1968, the last day of services on the line. The closing of the line allowed the company to retire all its twin-axle stock without ordering new trams.


References


Bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Valerenga Line Oslo Tramway lines Railway lines opened in 1900 Railway lines closed in 1968 1900 establishments in Norway 1968 disestablishments in Norway