Today, the concept selection investigations for (KVU) were presented in Narvik, KVU Nord-Norgebanen and KVU Nord-Norge. Railway director Knut Sletta said that the Directorate of Railways does not recommend the construction of the Nord-Norgebanen from Fauske to Tromsø. Instead, a strengthening of the existing Nordlandsbanen and Ofotbanen railways is recommended. County council leader in Troms and Finnmark, Kristina Torbergsen (Ap), reacts to the recommendation. – It will be at the expense of the professional authorities, and we also want to politically believe that railways to the north are incredibly important, and that it must be expanded in a larger perspective, she says. Torbergsen is asking for a clear idea of what you want to develop Northern Norway into, and not just maintain what the country is today. – In order to develop our region, transport, and connecting the regions more closely together, is an important premise for success. Facts about the Nord-Norgebanen The further extension of the railway connection has been planned and proposed ever since the Nordlandsbanen was completed in 1962. Already in the 1970s there were plans for the Nord-Norgebanen all the way to Tromsø. In March 1989, the Labor Party, which then held government power, adopted a program formulation to carry out the planning of the Nord-Norgebanen in the coming period. The construction work must be started when the planning provides a basis for it, it was stated in the program post. In the same year, the Center Party also decided that the Nord-Norgebanen should be built. When the railway report for the period 1990 to 1993 was discussed in June 1989, the Labor Party, KrF and Sp said that there should be a basis for presenting a plan for the Nord-Norgebanen by 1993. At that time, they also wanted to investigate a rail connection from Kirkenes via Nikel to Murmansk in the then Soviet Union. In April 1990, the Ministry of Transport stated that an expansion of the Nord-Norgebanen would cost NOK 15 billion. However, this should also include electrification of the Nordlandsbanen and new railway equipment. In 1993, a majority at the LO congress decided to be in favor of the Nord-Norgebanen being built, starting during 1997. On 25 February 1994, then transport minister Kjell Opseth (Ap) shelved the plans for the extension of the Nord-Norgebanen for good that it was determined that the costs of extending the track would be ten times higher than the benefit. In 2009, the National Transport Plan for the period 2010 to 2019 was presented with the wording “During the planning period, the Government does not intend to plan or build a railway on the Fauske-Tromsø section”. In the National Transport Plan for the period 2019–2029, it was decided that a possible development of the Nord-Norgebanen from Fauske to Tromsø, with a connection to the Ofotbanen in Narvik, should be investigated. On 1 July 2019, the Norwegian Directorate of Railways presented a cost investigation on possible railway development from Fauske to Tromsø. The cost estimate states that the track will cost between NOK 113 and 120 billion. According to the calculations, the track will not be economically profitable with a net loss of between NOK 46 and 109 billion. On Wednesday, Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap) will receive the report from the National Road Administration, the Norwegian Railway Directorate, Avinor and the Coastal Administration on the basis for future transport systems in northern Norway. The report deals with transport by road, rail, shipping and aviation in Northern Norway up to 2060. (Source: NTB) – Possible with better political solutions Despite a clear recommendation not to build the Northern Norway Railway, Torbergsen is clear that there are other possibilities than the concepts that form the basis of KVU Nord-Norgebanen. County councilor for transport, Agnethe Masternes Hansen and county council leader Kristina Torbergsen are critical of the recommendation to scrap the Nord-Norgebanen. Photo: Øystein Arild M Antonsen / news – It is clear that if you connect the various concepts here, it is possible to find better political solutions than the professional authorities have assumed, she says. County councilor for transport in Troms and Finnmark, Agnethe Masternes Hansen (Ap), believes the county must be crystal clear that both the Storting and the government must deliver on the ambitions they have to develop Northern Norway in the future. – Then transport is an important key, both when it comes to roads and the development of railways, says Masternes Hansen. The Minister of Transport still has goals for the railway Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap) will not put the nail in the coffin for the Nord-Norgebanen, despite the Norwegian Railway Directorate’s crushing verdict. Nygård points out that the government in the Hurdal platform has said that they aim to build the train route. Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård (Ap) will not put the nail in the coffin for Nord-Norgebanen. Photo: Christine Breivik Øen / news – That goal did not disappear because we received a concept selection investigation, says Nygård to NTB. He points out that the investigation must now be quality assured, it must be sent for consultation and he expects a debate on the conclusions. – We will make our assessments of what we will land on. It is too early to put two lines under the answer in one direction or the other, he says. Erlend Svardal Bøe, parliamentary representative for the Conservative Party in Troms, believes that the Labor Party and the Center Party have created great expectations in the region when it comes to the development of the Nord-Norgebanen. Erlend Svardal Bøe, parliamentary representative for the Conservative Party in Troms is in favor of a railway in the north, but believes it should not be at the top of the priority list. Photo: Stortinget / Stortinget – They must take responsibility for the promises they have made to the voters, but I see that the report does not recommend a new development, but an upgrade of the existing railway in the north. I am a supporter of railways in the north, but believe that it should not be at the top of the priority list from the region, he says. – Not surprised Hilde Sagland, deputy chair of the Troms Committee for Railways, is not surprised by the Directorate of Railways’ conclusion, but she has no understanding of it. – The Nord-Norgebanen is actually something as big and important as nation-building, and I cannot understand why it is not important, says Sagland. Hilde Sagland, deputy chair of the Tromskomiteite for railways. Photo: Malin Straumnes / news She is very dedicated to the cause, and even has several tattoos in honor of a railway in the north. – I don’t think they understand the consequences of us being a divided country. We have no other options to bring Norway together in an environmentally friendly and future-oriented way, says the deputy leader. Don’t think the train has left Mayor of Tromsø, Gunnar Wilhelmsen (Ap) told news on Tuesday that he doesn’t think the train has left for Nord-Norgebanen. – It costs a lot to build the Fornebubanen even now, says Tromsø mayor Gunnar Wilhelmsen to NTB on Wednesday morning, and refers to the 7.7 kilometer extension of the subway in Oslo which is now expected to cost over NOK 31 billion. Mayor of Tromsø municipality, Gunnar Wilhelmsen, still has hope for a Nord-Norgebane. Photo: Eirik Hind Sveen / news He does not want to give up the work on railways in the north and justifies it, among other things, by the fact that the geopolitical situation has changed so much since the previous report came out, and that increased tourism and larger fish imports and exports play a role. – For me, it is crucial that Sweden and Finland have become NATO members. In the future, we will work east-west in a completely different way, and Finland will have access to the coast, says Wilhelmsen. Excited about the reasons Mayor of Målselv municipality, Bengt-Magne Luneng, says that he plans to read carefully through KVU Nord-Norge and KVU Nord-Norgebanen. He is not surprised by the Norwegian Railway Directorate’s recommendation, but still believes that it would make sense to build the track. Mayor of Målselv municipality, Bengt-Magne Luneng. Photo: Kari Anne Skoglund / news – It will be interesting to look at the various points that have been put forward, says the mayor. He himself sees several reasons for building the Nord-Norgebanen instead. – We want goods on the track, we want people to be able to commute longer and for them to be able to do it on the railway. In addition, there is a security policy dimension to this, says Luneng. Sjømat Norge happy with improvement Although Sjømat Norge largely uses the railway from Narvik and Fauske, they are satisfied with the conclusions. The deputy managing director of Sjømat Norge, Trond Davidsen, is satisfied with the Norwegian Railway Directorate’s recommendations. Photo: Siv Dolmen / Sjømat Norge – Our immediate reaction is that the proposal from the Norwegian Railway Directorate responds well to the challenges the seafood industry has, and the views we have had regarding the further development of rail in the north, says deputy managing director of Sjømat Norge, Trond Davidsen. He emphasizes that their primary desire has always been to get something done with the track sections that are used today, which is recommended in the report. – We will never get a line to Lofoten or Senja, so having good supply roads and development of infrastructure to the hubs is desirable, says Davidsen. The Sámi Parliament satisfied The Sámi Parliament is satisfied that the investigations have now concluded that it will be to improve and upgrade existing roads and railway networks instead of building new ones. Maja Kristine Jåma in the Sámi Parliament is happy about the recommendation to scrap the Nord-Norgebanen. – It will save a lot of valuable nature, bog, topsoil and reindeer grazing areas from decommissioning, while at the same time contributing to a better infrastructure for transport in Northern Norway in terms of accessibility, traffic safety and preparedness, says Maja Kristine Jåma. She points out that reindeer herding is experiencing major losses along road, and particularly railway. – That is why it is positive that the spotlight is directed at measures that will help prevent it and at the same time increase safety for both people and animals, says Jåma.
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Not giving up hope for Nord-Norgebanen – news Troms and Finnmark
