Rauma Line

Infobox rail line
name = Rauma Line
nativcename = Raumabanen

---

caption =
type = Railway
system = Norwegian Railway
status =
start = Dombås Station
end = Åndalsnes Station
stations = 5
open = 30 November 1924
close =
owner = Norwegian National Rail Administration
operator = Norges Statsbaner
CargoNet
character = Freight and passenger
stock = BM93
linelength = km to mi|114.2|abbr=yes
tracklength =
notrack = Single
gauge = RailGauge|sg
el = No
speed =
elevation = |

The Rauma Line ( _no. Raumabanen) is the km to mi|114.2|abbr=yes long stretch of railway from Dombås (on the Dovre Line) to Åndalsnes in Norway. The line is a sidetrack to the main line between Oslo and Trondheim, and it is not electrified. Raumabanen is the only railway extending into Møre og Romsdal county. There are five stations, of which three are manned by the Rail Administration. The five stations are Dombås, Lesja, Lesjaverk, Bjorli and Åndalsnes. This is because the Rauma line is not remotely controlled, but in need of being run manually at the stations. Originally there were twelve stations along the line. The line is operated by Norges Statsbaner (NSB), which runs four passenger trains each way daily with Type 93 units. From Åndalsnes there are bus connections to Ålesund,Molde and Kristiansund, and from Dombås there are train connections to Oslo and Trondheim. In the summer there are special tourist trains running from Åndalsnes to Bjorli, some of which are steam operated.

History

A committee to build a railway to the cities of Møre og Romsdal was first settled in 1869, and five years later stocks were sold to contribute to the construction, which was not approved by the Norwegian Parliament. In 1908, however, the parliament decided to build a railway to the Romsdalsfjord. The construction started on 12 January 1912 and was finished nearly 13 years later on 30 November 1924. The first part from Dombås to Bjorli opened for traffic as early as 1921. The 12 years of construction required more than 14 million man-hours and investments totaling NOK|49 million.

The line played a key role during World War II when, during the early hours of 9 April 1940, Norway's gold reserves, totaling 3,000 bars or 49 tons, were hurriedly removed from the Norges Bank (the central bank of Norway) ahead of Nazi Germany's invasion of Norway. The gold was shipped by trucks to Lillehammer, where it was placed on a train that took the Raumabanen to Åndalsnes where British cruisers were waiting to collect the cargo. [cite web| url=http://www.warsailors.com/singleships/bomma.html| title=M/S Bomma - Norwegian Merchant Fleet 1939-1945| publisher=warsailors.com| accessdate=2007-08-05]

Norsk Bane has launched ideas to build a parallel high-speed line, that would extend to Ålesund and Vestnes—the latter with a ferry connection to Molde.

Interesting sites

The route includes a number of notable geological formations and engineering works. The railway passes the well-known mountain formation Troll Wall (Trollveggen) and crosses the Rauma River on the m to ft|59|abbr=yes high Kylling Bridge (Kylling Bru). [cite web| url=http://www.visitnorway.com/templates/NTRproduct.aspx?id=160658 |title=Kylling Bru - visitnorway.com |publisher=visitnorway.com |accessdate=2007-08-05] The line has a double horseshoe curve at Verma, the lower curve crosses the river gorge by the Kylling Bridge and continues in the short Kylling tunnel (440 meters) under the road, after 3 kilometers climbing the line enters the upper curve inside the Stavem tunnel (1340 meters). [Raumabanen promotional web site [http://www.raumabanen.com/reisen2.php] ] [CapLex [http://www.caplex.no/Web/ArticleView.aspx?id=9329280] ] Each of the curves have a radius of only 275 meters. At Monge it passes the Mongefossen, one of the world's tallest waterfalls. [World Waterfall Database [http://www.worldwaterfalldatabase.com/waterfall.php?num=7] ] The latter of which may be viewed during the summer months to the north of the railway station at Flatmark.

References

External links

* [http://www.raumabanen.net Promotional site]
* [http://kyllingbru.weblogg.no/ Private blog on Kylling bridge]