Trains and other things: Kristiansand, Kongsberg, Drammen, Holmestrand, Sandefjord

Day 6 starts in Kristiansand

The view in the morning from my hotel.

Taking a walk in the morning at Odderøya island and meeting this animal.

Timetable outside ferry terminal

This morning there is only a train to Oslo

Setesdal Line was the first one built from Kristiansand to Byglandsfjord already in 1896, but today it only a short heritage railway between Grovane and Røyknes is preserved

16 departures per day

BM73 is parked in Kristiansand

My train is arriving from Stavanger

The railway to Stavanger is to the left

TMZ 1450 "Frøya" from Infranord

Vennesla

Arriving to Nelaug

BM86 from 1954 at "Arendalsbanen Venner" location

Arendal Line connects to Sørlandet Line in Nelaug. BM69 operates on the route to Arendal.

Waiting for an arriving train

Gjerstad

One of the bridges along the route

Fish burger is very tasty served at the train's dining car

Nordagutu

I'm arriving to Kongsberg

At Kongsberg it is possible to change for L12 Local train

BM75 at Kongsberg

Vestfossen

Mjøndalen. Here the line is shared between trains to both Bergen and Stavanger until Hokksund.

Gulskogen

Train has arrived to Drammen, one of the major stations in the Oslo region

Station building from 1863

Bragernes kirke

Bridge over Drammenselva river

My next train R11 will take me to my next destination - Holmestrand.

Vestfold line was built 1882 and partially upgraded to a high speed (200km/h) double track line since 1995 as part of the Intercity project.

New Sande station opened 2001

The latest project on the line is a 12.3km long Holmestrandsporten Tunnel opened as late as November 2016.

From Wikipedia: "The new Holmestrand Station is located inside the mountain in the middle of the tunnel. The total cost of the project was estimated to be 6.6 billion Norwegian Kroner upon completion. The new tunnel reduces traveling time on the Vestfold Line by five minutes"

This day the train frequency was once each 2h, but I decided to explore the new station.

The station has two platforms and four tracks, two of which (in the middle) are supposed to be used for non-stopping trains. The hall is designed to allow high speed trains to pass in 250 km/hour, with a special emphasis on managing air pressure, noise and wind speed.

The old railway has been demolished

Station entrance inside the mountain

Holmestrand is located next to the Oslofjord

Another entrance, which is not yet opened

Sculpture of sisters Harriet and Agathe Backer.

Pets are not allowed in the new station

The station is impressing, but for such a small village and so few trains... I don't know, it seems to be madness.

Next train is arriving

There are proposals to connect the Vestfold Line with the Sørlandet Line via a new Grenland Line. It would connect to the Vestfold Line just north of Porsgrunn Station and would run 59km from Porsgrunn to Skorstøl on the Sørlandet Line. The line would allow the travel time from Kristiansand to Oslo in 3h 15min compared to today's 4h 30min.

Passing by Slottsfjelltårnet in Tønsberg

From Wikipedia: "There are no current plans for the sections from Drammen to Skoger, Nykirke to Barkåker and between Tønsberg and Larvik, but the government aims at upgrading the entire line by 2030, as part of the InterCity Triangle project."

Since the introduction of the air passenger taxes in 2016, Ryanair has closed its base in Rygge airport, while it is still has some flights left from Torp airport.