The British train company that took over operations in southwestern Norway is giving up on running the three train lines Sørlandsbanen, Arendalsbanen and Jærbanen. All of them run between Oslo, Kristiansand and Stavanger, and it’s been a bumpy ride for everyone involved.
The British operator, Go-Ahead, has been running the three lines since 2019, after the former Conservatives-led government put all of Norway’s train lines out to bid in 2017. That was part of railroad reforms prodded by EU competiton rules, and Go-Ahead became the first foreign operator of Norwegian train lines ever.
Its ambitions were high back then, but trouble cropped up quickly. Norway’s railway infrastructure has been badly in need of renovation all along, and the tracks on Sørlandsbanen have more twists and turns and steep stretches than most other rail lines in the country. Then Go-Ahead ran into criticism over maintenance of the train carriages for which it became responsible, some of which were also in need of frequent repair.
Go-Ahead’s latest managing director in charge of Norwegian operations, Patrick Verwer, has been critical of Norwegian authorities’ railroad policy, and has no desire to continue operations in Norway when its current concession expires at the end of next year. “We have no plans in Norway after 2027,” Verwer told Stavanger Aftenblad. “Now we’re planning for a silent and seamless exit.”
This year got off to a bad start and then got worse after a series of problems along the tracks and with the train carriages. From September last year to February this year, more than 1,000 departures were cancelled because of problems with the trains that run on the route. Railroad authorities also found more than 2,000 flaws during an inspection of Go-Ahead train maintenance, 83 of which were deemed serious.
Go-Ahead, meanwhile, claims it has lost NOK 530 million on its Norwegian operations despite state support. State officials at the transport ministry aren’t happy either and on Tuesday, the Reds Party called for a halt to Go-Ahead’s operations immediately. The Reds want to terminate the British operator’s contract 18-months before it runs out.
Passenger have also been running out of patience with the line, because of all the delays and cancellatons they experience. Now many are riding long-distance buses between Oslo and Kristiansand because they’re far more reliable, while regional commuters complain that the train service they were promised is far too often replaced with minibus service. Go-Ahead’s on-time record was only 66 percent last year, when a record number of trains (617) were cancelled.
Go-Ahead’s contract, however, still runs through December next year. The Reds plan to propose ending it immediately and turning over service to the former state-controlled train operator now called Vy. Ingrid Fiskaa, a Member of Parliament for the Socialist Left party (SV) also wants Go-Ahead to leave Norway as soon as possible.
“We are looking for solutions so that (a new operator) can be in place quickly,” Fiskaa told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) on Tuesday. She thinks the privatization of Norwegian trains has been a fiasco.
NewsinEnglish.no/Nina Berglund
