Thamshavn Line

About

The Thamshavn Line (Thamshavnbanen) was Norway's first electric railway, running from 1908 to 1974 in what is now Trøndelag county. Today it is operated as a heritage railway and is the world's oldest railway running on its original alternating current electrification scheme, using 6.6 kV 25 Hz AC. It was built to transport pyrites from the mines at Løkken Verk to the port at Thamshavn, as well as passengers. There were six stations: Thamshavn, Orkanger, Bårdshaug, Fannrem, Solbusøy and Svorkmo. The tracks were extended to Løkken Verk in 1910. It is Scandinavia's only railway with a rail gauge of 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in), though the nearby Trondheim Tramway also features this gauge. It is the world's only railway with this combination of gauge and electrical equipment. The total length of the railway was 25.15 kilometres (15.6 mi). The transportation of passengers ended in 1963, but the transportation of ore continued until 1974. In 1983, parts of the railway were reopened as a heritage railway.

Adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Photography via Wikimedia Commons.