Sulitjelma Line

Sulitjelma Line
The former station at Sjønstå
Overview
Type	Railway
System	Norwegian railway
Status	Abandoned
Termini	Finneid Fagerli
Stations	11
Operation
Opened	1892
Closed	1972
Owner	Norwegian State Railways
Operator(s)	Norwegian State Railways
Character	Freight and passenger
Technical
Line length	35.8 km
No. of tracks	Single
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	No

The Sulitjelma Line (Norwegian: Sulitjelmabanen) was a railway between Finneid in Fauske to Sulitjelma in Nordland, Norway. Built in 1891, it was a branch line of the Nordland Line from 1958 until it was abandoned in 1972.

History

The construction of the line started in May 1891 when the mining company in Sulitjelma decided to build a railway between Sjønstå and Fossen. Sjønstå is located on Lake Øvrevatnet close to sea level. The track was immediately extended to Hellarmo and completed in the following year. Hellarmo stands on Lake Langvatnet higher up the valley, 13 km from Sjønstå. The line was the first in Northern Norway.

The expansion into the mountains to the mine at Fagerli began in 1912, and at the same time the gauge was increased from 750 mm to 1067 mm. The official opening of the renovated and extended line was on 15 July 1915.

The track between Sandnes and Fagerli was removed in 1950, but in 1953 work began on extending the line to Finneid on the coast. Three tunnels, Grønnlifjell Tunnel, Hårskolten Tunnel and Sjønståfjell Tunnel, each with a length between 2,400 and 2,800 metres were built. Operation of the line to Finneid started in December 1956. A new tunnel was opened through Stokkviknakken on 30 November 1962. After this the railway had a total length of 35.8 km.

The line closed on 22 July 1972 and was rebuilt, including the tunnels, as a road, Route 830. This work was completed in 1975.

Stations

• Finneid
• Solvik
• Sjønstå
• Ågifjellet
• Tveråmo
• Fossen
• Hellarmo
• Sulitjelma
• Langvatnet
• Sandnes (Lomi)
• Fagerli (until 1950)

See also

• List of gauge conversions