Ring Line (Oslo) - History

History

By the 1960s, Oslo had a rapid transit network that branched out north-east and north-west from the city center. In 1987, the western and eastern network were connected, and through trains started operating between the two networks from 1993. Plans to make a second connection through the borough of Nordre Aker were launched by politicians in the 1980s. It was argued that this was cheaper than building roads, with the per-kilometer price being about a quarter of that for motorways. Some politicians also saw the Ring Line as an opportunity to close all parts of the Oslo Tramway, except the Ekeberg- and Lilleaker Line. Oslo Sporveier, the contemporary operator of the metro, started planning the line during the late 1980s. The plans would take advantage of the Gjøvik Line's right-of-way between Storo and Sinsen, while the section from Storo to Tåsen would have to be built in a tunnel.

A projection for the line was presented in 1991 by Oslo Sporveier, where daily ridership was estimated to be 54,000 passengers. The plans included a possibility for the high-speed Gardermoen Line, that would be built to Oslo Airport, Gardermoen, to have a stop at Storo. This was lated discarded when it was instead chosen to be built via Lillestrøm. There were also ideas to run trains from the Hoved Line from Lillestrøm to Grefsen Station via the Alnabru–Grefsen Line, located adjacent to Storo, that would allow the central parts of Groruddalen to connect with the Ring Line and Nordre Aker. When the operating company ordered new T2000 trains for the Holmenkoll Line, the design allowed future versions to have dual current systems, to handle both the 750 volts on the metro network (from a third rail and overhead wire), and the 15 kV 16⅔ Hz AC system of the main railways. This would allow the Ring Line to share the physical track with the Gjøvik Line on the section from Storo to Sinsen. The new T2ds were seen as a preparation for the Ring Line, and were optimized for higher speeds than the old stock, being capable of operating at 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph). At the same time, the Sognsvann Line was being upgraded to full metro standard, like the eastern part of the metro had, and would lose the overhead wires and get longer platforms.

In 1992, the tram division of Oslo Sporveier launched an alternative Ring Line that would have been built as a light rail, using in part the existing tramway. In the west, it would follow the Sinsen Line via Sinsen to Storo. A new line would have to be built from Storo to Tåsen. The line would then use the existing Sognsvann Line to Majorstuen, where it would connect to the tramway and follow the Frogner Line into the city, via a new Vika Line through Aker Brygge. This alternative would cost NOK 61 million to build, compared to NOK 470 million estimated for the rapid transit solution. Named the Light Rail Ring (Norwegian: Bybaneringen), it would have 38 stops instead of 16 stops, and a travel time of 34 minutes instead of 22 minutes. Annual operating costs for the light rail solution would be NOK 57.5 million, compared to 43.9 million for the rapid transit solution.

Between 1994 and 1998, there was local political debate about how Rikshospitalet, that was moving to Gaustad, should be served by public transport. The state wanted to extend the Ullevål Hageby Line of the tramway to the new hospital, while many local politicians wanted to use the rapid transit. Since the Ring Line would increase traffic on the Songsvann Line, moving the line was considered to better serve the hospital. In 1998, an agreement was reached whereby the light rail line would be built, and a new station for transfer from the metro would open at Forskningsparken.

A detailed suggestion was presented by Oslo Sporveier in August 1996. It became clear that Berg would not be served by the Ring Line. Many neighbors to the Sognsvann Line complained about the proposal, stating that they had hoped that the section from Majorstuen to Berg would have been rebuilt as a tunnel. They also argued that it was irrational that the line was running at-grade in densely populated areas, while it would run in a tunnel through the then mostly unpopulated Nydalen. To compensate, Oslo Sporveier stated that they would build noise screens along the line. Also, the Norwegian Public Roads Administration protested to the plans, and stated that funding should be allocated to upgrading Ring 3 to six lanes before public transport investments were made in the area.

The city council voted in favor of building the Ring Line on 25 June 1997, against the votes of the Progress Party. However, the decision did not include how the line would be financed, and the politicians stated that they were hoping that the state would use national road funds to finance the project. This was partially ensured in December, when a political agreement was reached for Oslo Package 2, a financing plan for investments in public transport in Oslo and Akershus between 2002 and 2011.

In December 1999, a disagreement arose between the Ministry of Transport and Communications and the city; the city would not except the government's promise to finance part of the line. Both Minister of Transport and Communications, Dag Jostein Fjærvoll from the Christian Democratic Party and Oslo City Commissioner of Transport and the Environment, Merete Agerbak-Jensen from the Conservative Party, agreed upon the distribution of funding from the city and state, and both wanted construction to start as soon as possible. The city council did not accept the guarantees from the state until March 2000. Construction started in June, with the Agency for Road and Transport of the municipality responsible for construction. The city would pay NOK 224 million, while the state would pay NOK 673 million.

The first section opened from Ullevål stadion via Nydalen to Storo on 20 August 2003, costing NOK 590 million. With the opening, line 4 was extended from Ullevål stadion to Storo. Nydalen had grown up as an urban redevelopment area after the local industry had been abandoned in the 1980s, where 14,800 jobs had been located by 2004. On 20 August 2006, the final section opened, from Storo via Sinsen to Carl Berners plass, with the whole project costing NOK 1,348 million.

A report published by the city in 2007 declared the line a success and stated that all goals for the line had been exceeded. A survey conducted by the city in 2003 and 2007 showed that the Ring Line had a significant impact on the use of public transport in the area. Total public transport ridership increased from 28 to 45%; use for commuting increased from 35 to 61%. At the Norwegian School of Management (BI), 85% of the students used public transport. The Ring Line reduced the estimated number of daily car trips by 10,000, and generated 11,000 more daily public transport trips. In 2007, daily passenger numbers at the stations were 8420 for Nydalen, 3630 for Storo and 2300 at Sinsen. The line allowed travel time from the Nydalen and Storo to the city center to be halved, and travel time from Nydalen to the city center is faster by metro than by taxi.