The Folloban had to close just nine days after the king had opened it. During the one week or so of operation on the line, there were several technical problems. When the electrical system overheated on 19 December, the track was completely closed to traffic. Since then, the reopening has been postponed several times, before Bane Nor said at the beginning of January that they would get traffic running again before 1 February. Now the reopening has been postponed once again, until 12 February. According to a press release from Bane Nor, the reason is that the work on error correction and testing of joints and end terminations turns out to be more extensive and time-consuming than expected. – We are sorry that the commuters and other travelers on the Folloban have not received the offer we promised them, and that it will now take further time before reopening, says Gorm Frimannslund, CEO of Bane Nor. Power failure Then there was also the development of smoke. The error concerns so-called return current. Trains do not use up all the current from the catenary. Therefore, the “rest” is sent back through the rails. But on Follobanen, this is done in a different way than is usual in Norway. Bane Nor therefore asked for an independent assessment of the solution. The report was ready less than two weeks before the opening. It pointed out several weaknesses and listed nine recommendations. Facts about the Follobanen The new Follobanen has had a difficult start. For now, the course is closed until January. The trains on the Folloban line between Oslo and Ski began running on the new section on 11 December, while it was officially opened the following day. With a top speed of 250 kilometers per hour, the journey time was to be halved on the 22 kilometer stretch, from 22 to 11 minutes. Already on the same day that the first trains ran, the trains had to run at a reduced speed on the route due to a signal error. On 19 December, Follobanen was closed due to power problems following a fire in a technical room connected to the Ski station. Then there had been adjustments and delays for several days. The plan was for the Follobanen to be closed until 27 December, but on Christmas Eve there was heat and smoke in the same facility. The underlying cause was not found and thus the reopening was postponed until 1 January. On 29 December, the cause of the failure had still not been found and the opening was again postponed. It is still uncertain when the Follobanen can open to traffic. Until then, it will be closed until January. Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap) has called Bane Nor, the Norwegian Railway Directorate and the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate to a meeting on Tuesday 3 January. Here, the Minister will receive a preliminary explanation of the closure of the Follobanen. He has previously asked for a written explanation, with a deadline of 16 January. While the Follobanen is closed, train traffic between Oslo and Ski runs on the Østfoldbanen’s old line. The prestigious project has a price tag of NOK 36.8 billion. Source: NTB Investigation required In the new year, transport minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap) called in an emergency meeting. Only there should he have received information about the uncertainty surrounding the current. Nor should the management of Bane Nor have received this information. Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap). Photo: Kristina Kalinina / news After the meeting, Nygård said that he wants an external investigation of the entire project. The Directorate for Social Security and Emergency Preparedness will also have a report on what has gone wrong. Nygård has also asked for more answers from Bane Nor and other central players. They have until Monday 16 January to respond. From this day, the plan is also to test run the facility. Expensive project The Folloban runs between Ski south of Oslo and Oslo S. It took 13 years to build and has a price tag of almost NOK 37 billion. This corresponds to close to NOK 1.7 million per meter on the track, which is 22 kilometers long. In 2008, it was estimated that the whole thing would cost NOK 11 billion. The Folloban runs between Oslo and Ski. The line will cut the journey time from 22 to 11 minutes, compared to the old Østfold line.
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The opening of the Follobanen postponed again – news Oslo and Viken – Local news, TV and radio
