Finse Tunnel
A freight train about to enter the Finse Tunnel
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| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Line | Bergen Line |
| Location | Finse, Norway |
| System | Norwegian railway network |
| Operation | |
| Opened | 16 May 1993 |
| Owner | Norwegian National Rail Administration |
| Operator |
Norges Statsbaner CargoNet Cargolink |
| Technical | |
| Line length | 10,300 m (6.4 mi) |
| No. of tracks | Single |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 8 1⁄2 in) |
| Electrified | 15 kV 16 2⁄3 Hz AC |
| Highest elevation | 1,237 m (4,058 ft) |
The Finse Tunnel (Norwegian: Finsetunnelen) is a 10,300-metre-long (33,800 ft) railway tunnel west of the village of Finse in Hordaland county, Norway. The tunnel is part of the Bergensbanen railway line between the cities of Oslo and Bergen. It is the longest tunnel on the line, and the third longest railway tunnel in the kingdom. Inside the tunnel, at 1,237 metres (4,058 ft) elevation, is the highest point on the Norwegian railway network.
The tunnel was constructed to increase the regularity of the line past the Finse peak which was often blocked by snow. Planning started during the 1980s to remove this section that was regularly snowed down, and at the same time reduce the length and increase the speed of the railway. Construction started in 1990, and it was opened by King Harald V on 16 May 1993. Following the construction of the tunnel, 32 kilometres (20 mi) of railway around this area was also rebuilt to achieve higher train speeds, a shorter overall distance, and to maximize the natural protection from the weather. This was built in five stages, opening between 1995 and 1998. The tunnel has been criticized for being a potential death trap in case of a fire.
When the Bergen Line opened in 1909, it was the first railway to connect Eastern and Western Norway. The railway had faced many engineering challenges during construction, and after it opened, winter proved to be a fierce enemy to holding the railway open. Especially the parts around Finse proved extremely difficult to manage. Despite the use of single-locomotive rotary snowplows running continually through the day, it was a known phenomenon that the track would be snowed out at times, and on a few occasions it went days before the track could be cleared.
To solve this challenge, the Norwegian State Railways (NSB) had built snow sheds along the track, especially on the section between Finse Station and Hallingskeid Station. Of the 20.7-kilometre (12.9 mi) line between the two stations, 10.5 kilometres (6.5 mi) was under snow sheds and 2.5 kilometres (1.6 mi) was in tunnel. Along this part of the line was the highest point of the railways, 1,301 metres (4,268 ft) at a point named Taugevatn.
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Wikipedia