Name change for Sørlandsbanen

Young boy on the train. Photo: Pixabay.com

Warns against a name change for Sørlandsbanen

The Norwegian Language Council is issuing a warning after the British train company Go-Ahead announced that passenger traffic on Sørlandsbanen (Southern Railway) will be dubbed as «Sørtoget» (the South Train) when they take over the operation of the line next year.

 

The Language Council asks the Norwegian Railway Directorate to intervene to stop the proposed name change.

– The Norwegian Railway Directorate must lay down guidelines for what names rail operators may use on behalf of the public, says Director in the Language Council, Åse Wetås.

The name Sørlandsbanen was adopted by the Norwegian Parliament (Stortinget) in 1913 and is currently used as both the name of the railway line between Drammen (Buskerud) and Stavanger (Rogaland) – and as the designation of the route between Oslo and Stavanger.

Confusing

The Language Council warns that it may be confusing for people to relate to two different names if there will be different acronyms for the railway line and the purchased product.

In a press release, the Norwegian Language Council points to that Go-Ahead disposes of public infrastructure and receives public grants and that, in their view, it will be unfortunate if «names of important public services will be altered every time the service is assigned to a different operator.».

 

© NTB scanpix / #Norway Today