Hønefoss Station

Hønefoss
The west side of Hønefoss Station. To the left trains heading towards Drammen. Behind the small yellow building was the old station house.
Location	Hønefoss, Romerike Norway
Coordinates	60°10′8.8284″N 10°14′53.153″E / 60.169119000°N 10.24809806°E / 60.169119000; 10.24809806Coordinates: 60°10′8.8284″N 10°14′53.153″E / 60.169119000°N 10.24809806°E / 60.169119000; 10.24809806
Elevation	96.8 m (318 ft)
Operated by	Norwegian State Railways
Line(s)	Bergen Line Randsfjorden Line Roa–Hønefoss Line
Distance	89.57 km (55.66 mi)
Platforms	2
Connections	Bus: Vestviken Kollektivtrafikk
History
Opened	12 October 1868

Hønefoss Station (Norwegian: Hønefoss stasjon) is a railway station located at Hønefoss in Ringerike, Norway. The station is located at the intersection between the Bergen Line, the Randsfjord Line and the Roa–Hønefoss Line. Hønefoss is served by express trains to Oslo and Bergen, but all local trains traffic has been terminated. The station is designed as a V-shape keilbahnhof.

Norsk Museumstog has its operation base at Hønefoss station, where it maintains all its locomotives. Norwegian Museumstog, cooperating with the Norwegian Railway Club is working on restoration, maintenance and operation of railway equipment. All revenues go to the maintenance of trains and locomotives with cultural value.

Begna Railway Bridge is a 216 meter long bridge that runs over the Ådal River (lower part of Begna) at Hønefoss Station, directly above the Hønefoss water falls. The bridge was built in 1898, adopted at the same time that it was decided that the Bergen Line would go to Hønefoss.

During the second half of the 19th century Hønefoss and the areas around were witness to a massive technological development. From being a small village with commerce related to the waterfall and the sawmills, the railway connection to Drammen in 1868 was vital for the city's industry and trade into the 20th century.

The idea of a railway from Drammen to Hønefoss was launched in 1846, before any other railways were constructed in Norway. The Land municipal council had contacted the Ministry of the Interior granting a wish to better communication between Drammen and the lakes of Tyrifjorden and Randsfjorden. But nothing happened at the time. In 1853, one year before the first railway line in Norway, Trunk Line, opened, the city council in Drammen created a committee to consider possible connections to Opplandede. At the time a canal was considered, but since it only could be used half the year the concept was dropped. In 1857 the civil engineer Carl Abraham Pihl was given the responsibility from the Ministry of Inner Affairs to consider whether it was possible to construct a railway between Drammen and Randsfjorden, and his report was concluded on 31 May 1858. It concluded with that it was possible to build the Randsfjord Line, and he had also estimated the costs of the project to 1,150,000 Norwegian speciedaler. Drammen city council conducted a meeting on the topic in Hønefoss on 12 September 1859 where it was decided to start construction.