Lillesand–Flaksvand Line

Lillesand–Flaksvand Line
Lillesand Station in 1902
Overview
Native name	Lillesand–Flaksvandbanen
Type	Railway
System	Private
Status	Abandoned
Termini	Lillesand Flaksvand
Operation
Opened	4 June 1896
Closed	1 July 1953
Owner	A/S Lillesand–Flaksvandbanen
Technical
Line length	16.59 km (10.31 mi)
Track length	18.15 km (11.28 mi)
Number of tracks	Single
Track gauge	1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in)
Electrification	No
Route map 17 km Flaksvand(1896) Branch to sawmill 14 km Birkeland(1896) 11 km Tveite(1896) Branch to stone quarry 7 km Eikeland(1896) 5 km Storemyr(1896) Branch to gravel pit 2 km Møglestu(1896) 1 km Stene(1896) 0 km Lillesand(1896)

The Lillesand–Flaksvand Line (Norwegian: Lillesand–Flaksvandbanen) or LFB was a 16.59-kilometer (10.31 mi) railway between Flaksvand (now called Flaksvatn) and Lillesand in Aust-Agder, Norway. The private line was built with 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge and was not connected to the national railway network. The line opened on 4 June 1896, and remained in use until 15 June 1953. It was built to carry lumber, but also featured a passenger service and other cargo transport. After 1908, the line was unprofitable and only had a limited service. Plans to connect it to the Sørland Line were proposed but rejected. The line had four stations and four halts, and was served with two 75 kilowatts (100 hp) steam locomotives, Lillesand and Flaksvand. The line was owned and operated by the private company, A/S Lillesand–Flaksvandbanen, although nearly all the shares were held by local municipalities, the county and the national government.

The 16.59-kilometer (10.31 mi) line was built at a minimum standard and as cheaply as possible. It had 1,067 mm (3 ft 6 in) narrow gauge, with the steepest gradien at 3.33 percent, a minimum curve radius of 60 meters (200 ft) and a track weight of 60 kilograms per meter (145 lb/yd). The line had four stations: Lillesand, Tveide, Birkeland and Flaksvand. In addition, there were four halts between Lillesand and Tveide: Stene, Møglustu, Storemyr and Eikeland.

In addition to the main line, there were 11 branches and spurs, totaling 1,550 metres (5,090 ft). At Lillesand Station, there was a station building, a wagon depot, a locomotive depot and tracks to the docks. At Møglestu, there was an extra parallel track and at Sandvad, there was a branch to a gravel pit. Extra tracks were laid at Storemyr for parking of wagons and at Ydderstad, there was a spur to load lumber. At Eikeland there three spurs, including one 600 metres (2,000 ft) long to a stone quarry. At Jordbruna, there was a spur for loading lumber, and at Tveite, there were three spurs, of which two went to the sand pit at Moelva and one to Myhre Torvstrøfabrikk. North of Tveite, there was a spur to leave part of the train if the locomotive needed to take two trips to get up the hill. At Birkeland Station, there were two extra tracks, one for stationing cargo trains and one to the sawmill. At Flaksvand Station, there were five tracks, of which three were at the station, one to the sawmill and for loading lumber.