Lack of maintenance could lead to train crisis for Norwegian passengers

Train foreign operator railroadTrain at Oslo Central Station. Photo: Norway Today Media

The train park in Norway is getting older, and NSB is experiencing daily problems due to old equipment. The Norwegian train company believe they need 25 new trains a year.

‘’Norwegian trains need 25 new trains a year as far as we can see. Now it is urgent to get started with a big, new train contract’’ said director, Øystein Risan of Norske tog, who owns and manages trains for rental to passenger train operators in Norway.

‘’It’s critical. We are out of stock, we have no more to go on. Old trains mean lesser reliability. That means more delays ‘’ said Risan to NRK news.

He said he needs NOK 3 billion a year to invest in new trains.

On type 7 trains on the Bergen Line, extraordinarily large jobs are now underway to keep the trains in operation. The trains are between 31 and 37 years old, and it takes almost three weeks to repair two wagons.

The local trains that are currently used between Stavanger and Sandnes, and between Lillestrøm and Spikkestad, type 72, also need a mid-life upgrade.

When trains stop more often, it means they have to go to the yard more often, and we get fewer trains to carry passengers. And those we drive become narrower, fuller and there will be more delays” said Åge-Christoffer Lundeby, press officer at NSB.

In addition, the new trains are needed for local traffic, and the distant trains to Bergen are also ready for replacement believes Lundeby.

Minister of Transport, Jon Georg Dale of Fremskrittsparti (FRP), agrees that there are a lot of old trains.

‘’Norske tog can feel confident that we will continue to invest in train material.

But when they submit a proposal to their owner for the 2020 budget, they must understand that they have to wait until that budget comes before they get an answer’’ said Dale.

© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today