Railbiking
In A Wintry
STOCKHOLM
Arne
As railbikers we are constantly looking for unused rails on which to set our wheels, aren't we? Researching abandoned railways and designing railbikes actually helps me survive the long and dark Swedish winters
(OK, skiing can be fun too).
Two years ago my conception of unused rails and winter as a somewhat dreary season for railbikers changed thanks to my brother, Ake, who by the way, for many years has accompanied me on exciting railbike adventures. No longer did unused rails only mean abandoned rails, because Ake had realized that a not yet opened railroad also provides unused rails! After a new track has been laid, there is a short period of time before trains start running on it. But, you may ask, how about work crews and their equipment? Well, there are two days each year when hardly any Swede will work, regardless of how urgent his task may be. I am speaking of Midsummer Eve and Christmas Eve.
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My brother Ake. No, we are not twins.
Ake realized that right in Stockkholm and on Christmas Eve two years in a row, these conditions would be at hand! So for two years Ake and I were treated to a very special Christmas gift - unique railbiking. But how about trespassing, you may think, still not convinced of the soundness of this prospect. Well, in the first place, trespassing is not as serious over here as in the United States. Secondly, if you are going to do it, Christmas is a good and forgiving time to chose. Besides, we were to be on publicly owned ground, and we are both paying members of the public (substantially so). After this quick analysis of risks and civil rights, we made up our minds. Let's go!
Stockholm is a city of about a million and a half and has very good public transportation, notably a large subway system and commuter trains going in many directions. Practically all lines intercept at the Central Station in a star shaped fashion. This layout makes travelling from adjacent suburbs unnecessarily long (via the center), and to mitigate this a transverse light rail line has been added, called "Tvarbanan" (the Transverse Line). It is being built in sections, and the parts that have opened have proved very popular. The line is double tracked, runs in streets, through tunnels and on numerous bridges. It is of course very expensive to add a rail corridor in already developed areas, but the success so far has led to plans for further expansion at both ends. Ake and I will remain busy, so to say.
Our first trip set out on December 24, 1998 from Liljeholmen going south to Gullmarsplan. We parked our car near a tunnel entrance, sneaked in with out bags containing folding railbikes and quickly got them assembled behind a short work train that blocked the view from passers by. Before we were ready to set out however, a crew appeared and boarded the train! What to do now? We decided to at least find out what they were up to, rather than just going home with an unfulfilled mission. It turned out they were Finnish contractors doing maintenance on maintenance trains. They too, had figured that Christmas was an inactive period suitable for their specialty. They wished us a pleasant trip and assured us they would not move the train.
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Subway train approaching Gullmarsplan
We started pedaling with me in front (it was only later we discovered that it was nice running side by side one on each track). Suddenly I heard that frightful sound of an approaching train! You know that sound we all imagine now and then in the middle of a dark tunnel or going around a sharp curve. I got myself and the bike quickly off the rails and started waving and shouting to get Ake off as well. But he only laughed! He knew that near the tunnel exit a four track mainline crossed out track on an overpass. I had been fooled by a train on that bridge! But boy, it got me scared.
We continued and had a coffee break to calm me down at the next station close to houses and traffic. It was a cold day but luckily there was hardly any snow. We were careful at road crossings because the traffic lights were not
activated yet. The fact that traffic is quite light on Christmas Eve also helped. Many people saw us, but only a few showed any evidence of really noticing.
After an hour or so we approached the terminus at Gullmarsplan, where for about a kilometer, Tvarbanan runs right next to the subway. We cheerfully saluted out "colleagues" driving oncoming suburb trains on the track next to ours. They looked a bit puzzled, but didn't call on their supervisors (it struck us afterwards that they could well have done so).
We had a late lunch at another not yet inaugurated station. More of that hot coffee was needed to fight the damp and cold. By four o'clock we weree safely back at the car and by then it was already dark. We concluded it was a successful run, and that we had beaten the official inuguration by a month or so and that in fact were the first of the general public riding on Tvarbanan. The rest of the Holiday was traditional.
The first rider on the Tvarbanan
Next Christmas a new section was waiting for us to be inaugurated. Once more we were lucky not to be stopped by snow. It was a mild but very windy day. This year's section ran across two long bridges across Lake Malaren, one of which parallels a freeway encircling Stockholm. Light rail systems can have much sharper curves and steeper grades than railroads, which was very evident on this stretch of Tvarbanan. It was a good test for my tracking system which worked fine. It is a special feeling to ride on a perfectly manicured roadbed with concrete ties and welded but rusty rails passing by perfectly clean stations not yet hit by the graffiti mob. We had hoped to be able to ride some street track, but I quickly learned that my bike design wasn't really good at that, so we headed back. Once we had found shelter from the wind, Ake got the picnic out, comprised of assorted Swedish Holiday specialties, such as pickled herring and cured ham.
Going back we realized how strong the wind was especially on the high bridges. I literally blew off the rail once, but it wasn't dangerous since the bridge was ballasted and had a good railing. We finished our trip by going through a long tunnel that was a single bore for both tracks blasted out of solid granite. Such a tunnel feels very spacious compared to a single track tunnel.
Last year there were no sections of Tvarbanan ready for secret inauguraton, so we started laying our eyes on another beauty located at the western outskirts of Stockholm. A crooked secton of single track mainline is to be replaced by double track. The new line will be about five kilometers and run on high bridges and through tunnels, very much like Tvarbanan but heavy weight. By Christmas time however, the biggest bridge was still under construction and without rails, so this trip is instead scheduled for the beginning of April. There is a secluded spot in the middle of the line where we can get on.
Sometime during the summer the new line will open, and then we will quickly be there again, this time to ride the old line before it is scrapped. That will be shiny rail, believe me. The old line includes a swing bridge, and runs along Lake Malaren for quite a while. It is acutally much prettier than the new line.
Last October we did a similar trip some 250 kilometers north of Stockholm, where a 40 kilometer curvy mainline has been replace by straight track along a new freeway. The old line was refurbished shortly before it was closed (they call it planning), so it is all welded rails on concrete ties and heavily ballasted. I don't know what they will do with this track eventually, but it would be reasonable to salvage it soon. The overhead catenary was taken down immediately, befoe the locals got their hand on the valuable copper wire.
Ake walking a sharp curve,
since he didn't have the nerve.
CI write this on one of my numerous train trips from Gothernburg where I live to Stockholm where most of my work is done. It is a 300 mile trip that takes about three hours. The train speeds along at 125 mph. Approaching Stockholm we cross Tvarbanan on that overpass I mentioned earler. Then I usually look down at the nowadays shiny track below and think, "Well I was there first!".
Just imagine, one day Tvarbanan will be abandoned as well. Perhaps one of my great, great grand children will railbike on those rails too.
Another time I will tell you about a long scenic abandoned and slightly overgrown narrow gauge line in southern Sweden, just to give you a taste of the other extreme of railbiking over here. Stay tuned!
P.S. In Paris there is an abandoned equivalent to Tvarbanan called "le Petit Centiure" ("The Small Circle"). Until a few years ago almost the full circle was possible to railbike. The line was originally double track, but one track has been removed as well as the electric third rail. It runs in cuts, through tunnels, twice across the Seine River and in many parts is elevated
right in between houses. You could probably look down and see what people are having for dinner! I haven't gotten around to visiting this line, but recommend everyone to try it. Today some 30% has been reopened as a light rail line. Unfortunately some of the tunnels are boarded up since they became hangouts for dopies. Once every year (I believe in April) they celebrate "le Petit Centiure" and then people are allowed to walk it. Perhaps they even open the tunnels.
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