On track GLIMPSES OF JERNBANEVERKET'S ACTIVITIES IN 2015 Jernbaneverket is adopting new technology and new working methods in an increasing number of fields. A Norwegian railway tunnel is now being bored for the first time using TBM. Contact us Jernbaneverket units are located at several sites in the country. For more detailed information, visit our website or call our nationwide telephone service: 05280 From abroad (+47) 22 45 50 00 Postal address Jernbaneverket, Postboks 4350, NO-2308 Hamar Email [email protected] www.jernbaneverket.no “The major basic route change from December 2012 has resulted in formidable growth of passenger rail traffic in Eastern Norway, and the final pieces of the puzzle fell into place when Høvik station became fully operational by the time Contents of the timetable change in December 2015.” Editorial 3 Kjell Rune Pettersen Photo: Rail traffic 4 A glimmer of light for freight and rail services 4 12 CargoNet in the black 7 New tender 8 Timber on the increase 8 Punctuality approaching European peak 9 Maintenance and renewals 10 The beginning of a new era 11 Exciting times Firmly raising the standard at many stations 12 Rail initiative employed thousands 14 Hilde Lillejord Photo: A new era for tunnel building in Norway 16 In June 2015, the Parliament of Norway made to pave the way for further ERTMS development a decision to reform the railway sector. Work and digitalised infrastructure monitoring. Groundbreaking 18 relating to that reform has characterised the past year, and will do so to an even greater extent in In December, 17 km of new double track on the Ready for railway technology 18 Herrenknecht AG Photo: From concrete and ballast to steel and cables 19 2016. The new organisation will come into force Dovre Line along Lake Mjøsa was opened to Full speed ahead along Lake Mjøsa 20 on 1 January 2017, and Jernbaneverket will be traffic, and Høvik station on the Drammen Substantial capacity increase on the Ofoten Line 21 16 replaced at that time by a newly established Line was completed, along with necessary Cómo está in Ski 22 directorate and a state enterprise. Until that turning and parking areas for trains. 2015 was time, Jernbaneverket will continue to focus fully also the year in which huge tunnel boring The future 24 on delivering a constantly improving railway. machines (TBMs) were used in Norway for Norway’s biggest digitalisation project 24 the first time in order to drive a new railway Helicopter scan facilitates planning 26 The punctuality of passenger services in 2015 tunnel through Ulriken mountain in Bergen. A year of investigations 27 amounted to 91.5 per cent, thereby achieving Green light for the Ringerike Line and the E16 28 the target (90 per cent) for the fourth consec- With record investments being made in oper- utive year. The punctuality target for freight ation and maintenance, a wide range of main- Efficiency and improvement 30 services was not reached, but the result (79.4 tenance measures could be implemented over Systematic working to enhance efficiency 30 per cent) is still the best since 2012 and a num- the past year, and 2015 was the year in which On the right shelf 32 ber of measures to make transporting freight we began to make up some of the backlog by rail, instead of by road, more attractive are that had built up over several decades of low Safety and the environment 34 in the pipeline. maintenance funding. Safety work bears fruit 34 Riis-Ulsbøl Cathrine Photo: Safety culture: We are reducing risks 36 Work on coming up with smarter ways of The planning activities also reached record Who will you look after? 37 37 working in order to streamline activities is levels last year. Among other things, the A real festival lion 37 continuing irrespective of the reform. New important perspective analysis “Jernbanen Gathering local knowledge from farm owners 38 technology is being adopted in an increasing mot 2050”, a basis for the revised National Director General Lake Mjøsa just as clean as it used to be 39 number of fields, creating exciting new jobs Transport Plan, was presented in the spring. of Jernbaneverket Pesticide use halved 39 that are attracting talented young employees. This analysis shows that the railway will have The actual number of applicants for vacancies to play a greater part in passenger transport The year in brief 40 at Jernbaneverket has almost quadrupled over in the biggest cities in the future, and that Jernbaneverket then and now 42 the past two years. the railway can take on more of the anticipated growth in the flow of goods if there is New digital signalling systems were imple- deliberate, strategic investment in this at a mented on parts of the rail network in 2015. national level. In late August, the Østfold Line, Eastern Line became the first section of railway in Norway A safe, reliable railway infrastructure that works to start using the collective European signalling well for both passenger transport and freight system ERTMS. Improvement of the railway’s transport will benefit our entire society. This own mobile network (GSM-R) and development is the target we are working towards – and of a new fibre network are next in line in order nothing less. Issued by: Jernbaneverket, Oslo, May 2016 Print run: 200 / Layout and design: REDINK Cover photo: Øystein Grue. The picture shows a tunnel boring machine (TBM) during installation at Arna station. Printing/production: RK Grafisk 2 3 “I would like to commend Jernbaneverket, which has sided with freight over the past two years.” Rail traffic CEO Stein Børre Johnsen, Bring Linehaul AS Photo: Øystein Grue Photo: A glimmer of light for freight and rail services A turning point for freight trans- port is finally in sight following the tenacious repercussions of the financial crisis in 2008. Freight transport by rail has been battling a strong headwind for a number of years, but finally things seemed to be turning in 2015. While CargoNet managed to turn around several years of losses, Bring/Posten succeeded in increasing the volume of freight they trans- ported by rail by no less than 13 per cent. “I would like to commend Jernbaneverket, which has sided with freight over the past two years,” says Stein Børre Johnsen. He is the head of Bring Linehaul, the Posten/Bring division that deals with long-distance freight. In his view, this small breakthrough is due to the fact that people are now thinking along more commercial lines. “If we are to get freight onto the railways, meas- ures have to be controlled by business, not by politicians. Our job is to meet needs in the flow of goods. When it comes to logistics, perfor- mance is measured in terms of costs. We have enjoyed so much success because we work with the entire value chain. We work very closely with our customers’ businesses. A number of them work in-house with our own people,” explains Johnsen. “Major volumes will be transported by rail when customers are capable of seeing opportunities CargoNet at Saltfjellet for savings in their own part of the flow of goods as well and adding up the effects from 4 5 “Annual freight transport by rail is expected to increase by 10 million tonnes by 2030. And to that we can add freight that can be transferred from the road sector.” Train traffic Roger Kormeseth Photo: ArvidPhoto: Bårdstu ArvidPhoto: Bårdstu Øystein Grue Photo: Freight boost for Mosjøen CargoNet in the black 2015 was the year in which CargoNet operated at a profit again as a result of a rather drastic remedy. CargoNet last made a profit in 2007. The year after heralded the start of the financial crisis, and the years which followed presented an ever-increasing flow of cheap, foreign trailers. But now the tide has turned, from a deficit of NOK 90 million in 2014 to a profit of NOK 89 million in 2015. This restructuring initiative cost the jobs of one in five employees at CargoNet and its subsidiary Stein Børre Johnsen, Bring Linehaul AS Roger Kormeseth RailCombi. CargoNet also put maintenance out for tender, renegotiated supplier contracts and implemented lots of other measures as well, finally resulting in a sustainable organisation without significantly reducing its offering to customers. using rail services, which are cheaper than CargoNet began serving the freight terminal rail is on the increase are clear evidence that being adopted through specific action. “As a consequence of general market growth, In the future, one of the most important things road services,” explains Johnsen. in Mosjøen with one train a week, but they are Bring has become adept at doing just that,” con- Implementation of predefined routes for freight annual freight transport by rail is expected to for CargoNet is that the Alnabru freight terminal providing two a week now. The industrialisation cludes Stein Børre Johnsen. trains on the Røros Line in the event of closure increase by 10 million tonnes by 2030. And to remains operational. Volume is the key of the flow of goods is what may encourage the of the Dovre Line was another request put that we can add freight that can be transferred Volume is the key to economy when it comes to transportation of more freight by rail, reckons Taking action forward by industry. This has been put in place, from the road sector. We may be talking in terms “As long as Alnabru is working, the terminal is transporting freight by rail. Stein Børre Johnsen Stein Børre Johnsen. And when this has been Jernbaneverket has shone a spotlight on trans- with train paths for five freight trains not ex- of up to 13 million tonnes in total, which is 45 efficient.