Bjorli Station
Encyclopedia
Bjorli Station is a railway station on the Rauma Line located at Bjorli
in Lesja
, Norway
. The station opened on 19 November 1921 and was the line's terminus until 1923. In addition to a station building
, Bjorli had a water tower
, roundhouse
, turntable and a restaurant seating 700 people, the latter which was bombed to pieces in 1940. The station is served by Norwegian State Railways (NSB) trains four times per day per direction. In the summer, the station is the terminus of a tourist services from Åndalsnes
.
(NOK) to build and took 26,883 man-hours. The station and axillary buildings were designed by Gudmund Hoel
of NSB Arkitektkontor. The station opened with the first part of the Rauma Line on 19 November 1921. It remained the terminus until 25 November 1923, when the next section, to Verma Station, opened.
The station is located in a wide, flat terrain, so getting sufficient pressure to supply water for the steam locomotives would be very expensive. Instead, a water tower was built at the station, with water pumped from the river Rauma. The pump is located 140 metres (459.3 ft) from the tower, with the water intake being another 50 metres (164 ft) from the pump. The water tower was built in natural stone brick and is square. After the steam locomotive
services ended, was used as a storage facility. The tower cost NOK 103,795 to build. The station also received a turntable, which cost NOK 101,236, which had a 20 metres (65.6 ft) diameter. Although it was planned completed on 1 August 1921, construction was delayed and it was taken into use one month after the station opened. Bjorli had a temporary roundhouse while the station was the terminus. Built out of wood, the building cost NOK 30,373.
On 1 July 1927, a separate restaurant building with place for 700 diners opened. Open only during summer until September, it was aimed at cruise ship tourists who took the line from Åndalsnes to Bjorli. Operated by Norsk Spisevognselskap
, it was highly profitable. However, during the German occupation of Norway in 1940, the building was bombed and burnt down, and was never rebuilt.
, a subsidiary of NSB, while the tracks and infrastructure are owned and operated by the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The station building is unstaffed, but the waiting room is open from 07:00 to 22:00. The line lacks centralized traffic control
, so the station must be manned for trains to pass. The station has three tracks: two which are used for trains to pass and one which is designed for loading, and has an effective length of 75 metres (246.1 ft). The station has ten parking spaces but lacks ticket vending machines. The station is 575 metres (1,886.5 ft) above mean sea level
and located 57 kilometres (35.4 mi) from both Dombås and Åndalsnes, and 400 kilometres (248.5 mi) from Oslo
. It is located in the village of Bjorli in Lesja, that serves as an Alpine skiing center.
Bjorli
Bjorli is a village in Lesja municipality in Oppland, Norway that lies on the Rauma river near the western municipality border.Bjorli is served by the Raumabanen, providing a convenient method for tourists to reach this destination...
in Lesja
Lesja
Lesja is a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lesja....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The station opened on 19 November 1921 and was the line's terminus until 1923. In addition to a station building
Station building
A station building, also known as a head house, is the main building of a passenger train station. It is typically used principally to provide services to passengers.A station building is not to be confused with the station itself...
, Bjorli had a water tower
Water tower
A water tower or elevated water tower is a large elevated drinking water storage container constructed to hold a water supply at a height sufficient to pressurize a water distribution system....
, roundhouse
Roundhouse
A roundhouse is a building used by railroads for servicing locomotives. Roundhouses are large, circular or semicircular structures that were traditionally located surrounding or adjacent to turntables...
, turntable and a restaurant seating 700 people, the latter which was bombed to pieces in 1940. The station is served by Norwegian State Railways (NSB) trains four times per day per direction. In the summer, the station is the terminus of a tourist services from Åndalsnes
Åndalsnes
is a town in the municipality of Rauma in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Åndalsnes is the administrative center of Rauma. The town has a population of 2,207...
.
History
Construction of the station started in 1918 and was finished in 1921. The station, excluding its water tower and restaurant, cost 117,062 Norwegian kroneNorwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
(NOK) to build and took 26,883 man-hours. The station and axillary buildings were designed by Gudmund Hoel
Gudmund Hoel
Gudmund Hoel was a Norwegian architect. He is regarded as the second-most influential railway architect in Norway, after Paul Due....
of NSB Arkitektkontor. The station opened with the first part of the Rauma Line on 19 November 1921. It remained the terminus until 25 November 1923, when the next section, to Verma Station, opened.
The station is located in a wide, flat terrain, so getting sufficient pressure to supply water for the steam locomotives would be very expensive. Instead, a water tower was built at the station, with water pumped from the river Rauma. The pump is located 140 metres (459.3 ft) from the tower, with the water intake being another 50 metres (164 ft) from the pump. The water tower was built in natural stone brick and is square. After the steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
services ended, was used as a storage facility. The tower cost NOK 103,795 to build. The station also received a turntable, which cost NOK 101,236, which had a 20 metres (65.6 ft) diameter. Although it was planned completed on 1 August 1921, construction was delayed and it was taken into use one month after the station opened. Bjorli had a temporary roundhouse while the station was the terminus. Built out of wood, the building cost NOK 30,373.
On 1 July 1927, a separate restaurant building with place for 700 diners opened. Open only during summer until September, it was aimed at cruise ship tourists who took the line from Åndalsnes to Bjorli. Operated by Norsk Spisevognselskap
Norsk Spisevognselskap
Norsk Spisevognselskap A/S, often abbreviated NSS or shortened to Spisevognselskapet, was a Norwegian state enterprise which operated restaurant carriages on Norwegian trains and restaurants at train stations and railway hotels. The company was established in December 1918, and started a catering...
, it was highly profitable. However, during the German occupation of Norway in 1940, the building was bombed and burnt down, and was never rebuilt.
Facilities
The station building is owned by Rom EiendomROM Eiendom
Rom Eiendom is a subsidiary of the Norwegian State Railways responsible for managing the commercial sections of the companies real estate. With headquarters in Oslo, the company manages . The vast majority of this is in or in connection with railway stations...
, a subsidiary of NSB, while the tracks and infrastructure are owned and operated by the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The station building is unstaffed, but the waiting room is open from 07:00 to 22:00. The line lacks centralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control
Centralized traffic control is a form of railway signalling that originated in North America and centralizes train routing decisions that were previously carried out by local signal operators or the train crews themselves. The system consists of a centralized train dispatcher's office that...
, so the station must be manned for trains to pass. The station has three tracks: two which are used for trains to pass and one which is designed for loading, and has an effective length of 75 metres (246.1 ft). The station has ten parking spaces but lacks ticket vending machines. The station is 575 metres (1,886.5 ft) above mean sea level
Above mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
and located 57 kilometres (35.4 mi) from both Dombås and Åndalsnes, and 400 kilometres (248.5 mi) from Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. It is located in the village of Bjorli in Lesja, that serves as an Alpine skiing center.