Railways in

Sweden

Trains on the unique LKAB fully automated underground iron ore railway in the company’s mining complex at Kiruna.
The locomotives are class KR250LA, built by Schalker Eisenhütte Maschinenfabrik of Gelsenkirchen, Germany.

The first public railway in Sweden opened in 1856 between Nora and Ervalla, a distance of 18km. The line survives today as a tourist operation, the Nora Bergslags Jernväg. The first railway to reach the capital was the Stockholm to Göteborg railway in 1862, with trains taking 14 hours for the 455km (280 mile) journey between the two major cities.

The first railways in Sweden were built to standard (1435mm) gauge, which is the gauge of most of the main line railways today; but there was also once an extensive network of 891mm (3 Swedish feet) gauge lines. About 65km of this narrow gauge network in still used by the Roslagståg suburban trains in the Stockholm area, while elsewhere a few stretches remain as tourist operations.

Sweden has international rail connections with Norway, and with Finland via a dual gauge bridge (1435/1520mm) over the River Tornio. In 2000 a new line to Denmark was opened via the Öresund fixed link, giving Sweden a direct overland rail connection with the rest of Western Europe for the first time.

Main line passenger and freight services are provided by various operators. Regional services are for the most part operated under contract to local authorities; where possible, the operators are given in the service entries below.

In 2018, work began on a new 270km high speed rail line between Umeå and Luleå.

Main line railways

• SJ long distance passenger operator, also timetabling and tickets for all operators (Site in Swedish)
• Euronight operator of international sleeping services to Denmark, Germany, and Switzerland.
• Arlanda Express passenger shuttle service between Stockholm C and Arlanda Airport
• Blå Tåget passenger services between Göteborg and Uppsala via Stockholm
• Inlandsbanan lengthy railway serving remote inland parts of northern Sweden; the complete route runs for 1300km from Kristinehamn on the shores of Lake Vänern to Gällivare, north of the Arctic Circle on the Luleå to Narvik railway. Passenger tourist services operate during the summer months.
• Kalmar Länstrafik regional passenger trains in the Kalmar area, operated by Transdev (Sites in Swedish)
• Krösatågen regional passenger trains from Nässjö and Jönköping, operated by SJ (Sites in Swedish)
• Mälartåg regional passenger trains in the Stockholm - Mälardalen area. Operated by Transdev (Sites in Swedish)
• Norrtåg regional passenger trains between Sundsvall and Luleå, international day trains to Trondheim and Narvik, and overnight trains from Stockholm to Narvik. Operated by SJ (Sites in Swedish)
• Øresundståg passenger trains from Göteborg, Karlskrona, Vaxjö and Malmö via the Öresund fixed link to København, Denmark. Operated by VR Sverige (VR site in Swedish)
• Östgötapendeln regional passenger trains in the Norrköping, Linköping and Motala areas. Operated by Transdev (Transdev site in Swedish)
• Roslagståg suburban trains on a narrow gauge (891 mm) network in the Stockholm area. Operated by Transdev (Sites in Swedish)
• Skånetrafiken Pågatågen regional passenger trains in the Malmö / Kristianstad area. Operated by VR Sverige (VR site in Swedish)
• Snälltåget long distance passenger operator between Stockholm, Malmö and Åre, with through services to Denmark (København), Germany (Hamburg and Berlin), and Norway (Oslo).
• Tåg i Bergslagen regional passenger trains in the Bergslagen area to the north and west of Västerås. Operated by VR Sverige (Sites in Swedish)
• Tågkompaniet regional passenger trains to the north and west of Stockholm, and in the Umeå area (Site in Swedish)
• Upptåget regional passenger trains in the Uppsala area. Operated by Transdev (Transdev site in Swedish)
• Värmlandstrafik regional passenger trains in the Karlstad area:
  • operated by Tågkompaniet: Karlstad to Charlottenberg and Örebro
  • operated by Vy: Karlstad to Åmål and Torsby
  (Sites in Swedish)
• Västtrafik Västtågen regional passenger trains in the Göteborg area. Operated by SJ (SJ site in Swedish)
• VR international passenger service between Haparanda and Oulu (Finland)
• VR Resa passenger service between Göteborg and Stockholm
• Xtåg local passenger trains in the Gävle area. Operated by Tågkompaniet (Tågkompaniet site in Swedish)
• Green Cargo freight operating arm of SJ
• CargoNet independent freight operator
• SHN Cargo independent freight operator (No website located at present)
• Grenland Rail independent freight operator (Site in Norwegian and Swedish)
• Hector Rail independent freight operator, also operates passenger services under contract to Transdev and Blå Tåget
• LKAB operates iron ore trains in its underground mines in the Kiruna region. This is not unusual for a mining company and there has been an extensive 891mm gauge system, 1000m below ground in the mining complex for many years. However, Kiruna may be unique in having a specially built, standard gauge, fully automated electric railway some 12km in length, 1365m below ground level. Ore is transported from the mines over SJ tracks to Luleå and to Narvik, Norway, by Railcare.
• Railcare independent freight operator
• Trafikverket infrastructure authority
• Infranord infrastructure construction and maintenance

Tourist railways

• Anten - Gräfsnäs Järnväg lakeside tourist line near Alingsås, about 50km northeast of Göteborg. Anten to Gräfsnäs, 11km, 891mm gauge, usually steam hauled. Operates weekends June to August, and many weekdays in July (Site in Swedish)
• Åre Bergbanan funicular near the crossing of the Norwegian border by the main line from Östersund to Trondheim. Operates daily, mid December to early May
• Böda Skogsjärnväg (Böda Forest Railway) tourist railway on the island of Öland. Fagerrör to Trollskogen, about 4km, 600mm gauge, steam or diesel hauled. Operates Tuedays to Thursdays, late June to mid August (Site in Swedish)
• Dal-Västra Värmlands Järnväg standard gauge tourist railway in the mountains of western Sweden. Bengtsfors to Mellerud, 44km, usually operated by diesel railbus; operates Mondays to Saturdays, early June to late August
• Dellenbanan railbus excursion by diesel railbus between Delsbo and Fredriksfors (4km, standard gauge; operates typically 4 Saturdays during the summer) or pedal driven trolleys (Delsbo to Hybo, 21km, or Delsbo to Idenor, 31km; operates daily, mid May to September) (Site in Swedish)
• Engelsbergs-Norbergs Järnväg tourist railway in central southern Sweden. Kärrgruvan to Ängelsberg, 18km, standard gauge, diesel railbus. Not currently operating, no date given for reopening (Site in Swedish)
• Gotlands Hesselby Jernväg tourist railway on the island of Gotland. Hesselby to Eken, 6.5km, 891mm gauge, usually steam hauled; operates Sundays and many other days, June to August (Site in Swedish)
• Smalspårsjärnvägen Hultsfred–Västervik Hultsfred to Västervik, 71km, 891mm gauge, diesel railbus. Operates daily, July to mid August, and a few days in June and September
• Jädraås - Tallås Järnväg tourist railway on the east coast of Sweden. Jädraås to Svartbäcken, 6km, 891mm gauge, usually steam hauled. Operates Sundays and a few Saturdays, mid June to August
• Lennakatten tourist railway between Uppsala and Faringe; 33km, 891mm gauge, steam hauled or diesel railcar. Operates a few days each week from late May to September
• Munkedals Jernväg tourist railway on the west coast of Sweden north of Göteborg. Åtorp to Munkedals harbour, 600mm gauge, steam or diesel hauled. Not currently operating regular services, but trains may be privately chartered during the summer months (Site in Swedish)
• Nora Bergslags Veteran-Jernväg Nora to Järle (9.4km), standard gauge, steam hauled or diesel railcar. Operates Saturdays and a few other days, late June to August (Site in Swedish, button for English translation not functional when last checked)
• Ohsabanan from the railway museum at Ohs Bruk to Bor Norra, near Bor main line station. 14.5km, 600mm gauge, steam or diesel hauled. Operates weekends and a few other days June to August, also a few days in November and December, or by private charter
• Östra Södermanlands Järnväg tourist railway about 60km west of Stockholm. Mariefred to Läggesta Nedre (3.6km) and Läggesta Nedre to Taxinge Näsby (7.6km), 600mm gauge (constructed on a former standard gauge trackbed), steam or diesel hauled. Operates most weekends and a few other days, late May to early September, also a few days later in the year, or by private charter. On some days trains run between Mariefred and Läggesta Nedre only. Circular tours are available from Stockholm, aboard the historic steamship Mariefred from Stockholm to Mariefred, returning from Läggesta to Stockholm by normal service trains (ÖSlJ site in Swedish, button for English translation not functional when last checked)
• Risten - Lakviks Järnväg tourist railway in Lakvik, north of Åtvidaberg. Line about 1.9km in length, 600mm gauge, a further 1.7km planned for future opening. Steam or diesel hauled. Not currently operating regular services, trains may be privately chartered during the summer (Site in Swedish)
• Ryttarens Torvströfabrik former peat extraction railway, now part of a museum, near Kättilstorp. 600mm gauge, about 1km, original diesel loomotives hauling specially constructed open passenger cars. Operates about 5 weekends during the summer, and a few other days (Site in Swedish)
• Skånska Järnvägar tourist railway in the southeast of Sweden. Brösarp to Sankt Olof, 13.4km, standard gauge, steam or diesel hauled or diesel railcar. Operates Sundays and various other days mid June to mid September and a few other days later in the year (Site in Swedish)
• Skara - Lundsbrunns Järnvägar tourist railway about 100km northeast of Göteborg. Skara to Lundsbrunn, 891mm gauge (originally part of the same network as the Anten - Gräfsnäs Järnväg), steam hauled or diesel railcar. Operates weekends and various weekdays in July and August, and on a few other days of the year
• Wadstena Fogelsta Järnväg Vadstena to Fågelsta, 9.6km, 891mm gauge, diesel railcar (Site in Swedish with some information in English)

Historic Trams

• Stockholm
  • Djurgårdslinjen Norrmalmstorg or T-Centralen to Skansen. Standard gauge. Operates most weekends and various other days, April to December, also by private charter. A further section to Waldemarsudde is not currently operating. (Site in Swedish)
  • Transport Museum has a short miniature metro train ride within the museum (Site mainly in Swedish with some information in English)
• Göteborg Lisebergslinjen from Centralstation to Liseberg or Sankt Sigfrids Plan. 3.5km, standard gauge. Operates most Saturdays and some weekdays, June to December
• Malmköping Tramway Museum to Hosjö. 2.6km, standard gauge. Operates weekends and various other days, mid April to August, also by private charter (Site in Swedish)
• Malmö Banérskajen to the City Library and Bastionen. 2km, standard gauge. Operates weekends, June to September (Site in Swedish)
• Norrköping Standard gauge. Operates irregularly during the summer months, or by private charter

Dressinbanor

Pedal driven works trolleys for hire

• Dal-Västra Värmlands Järnväg various return trips from Bengtsfors, the longest being to Årjäng, 50km; operates daily, early June to late August
• Dellenbanan Delsbo to Hybo, 21km, or Delsbo to Idenor, 31km; operates daily, mid May to September (Site in Swedish)
• Gotlands Hesselby Jernväg on the island of Gotland. Hesselby to Eken, 6.5km, 891mm gauge; operates on various days in June and July when tourist trains are not running (Site in Swedish with some)
• Hagfors Järnvägsmuseum Hagfors to Uddeholm, 6.7km, 891mm gauge. Operates most days except Mondays, June to August
• Veteranjärnvägen Klippan Ljungbyhed Nybygget to Ljungbyhed, 6.5km, standard gauge. Operates most days, April to October (Site in Swedish)
• Äventyr på Österlen two sections, both standard gauge:
  • Tomelilla to Fyledalen, 9.5km
  • Sankt Olof (Skånska Järnvägar station) to Gyllebosjö
  Operates most days throughout the year
• Glimminge Station Broby to Glimminge, 6km, standard gauge. Operates most days throughout the year (Site in Swedish)
• Otterbäcksbanan Ängebäck to Gullspång, 38km, standard gauge. Shorter journeys also available (Site in Swedish, no booking information)
• Romeleåsens Dressincykling Björnstorp to Veberöd, 8 km, standard gauge. Operates daily, May to October (Site maily in Swedish with some information in English)
• Station Sågen various trips from Sågen. Standard gauge. Operates daily, mid may to mid October
• Svanskogbanan Åmål to Svanskog, 25 km, standard gauge. Operates daily, June to August (Site mainly in Swedish with some information in English)
• Gullspång two routes, both standard gauge:
  • Torvedsbanan Gullspång to Torved, 12.5km
  • Trelänsbanan Gullspång to Degerfors, 38km
  (No website located at present)
• Västra Centralbanan Ambjörnarp to Sjötofta, 8km, standard gauge (Site in Swedish with autotranslate to English)
• Föreningen Smalspåret Växjö-Västervik three separate sections, each 891mm gauge:
  • Virserum to Åseda, 27km
  • Flaten to Gårdveda, 12km
  • Hultsfred to Målilla, 12km
  Operates most days in July and August, also weekends in September
• Wadstena Fogelsta Järnväg Folkets Park, near Vadstena to Fågelsta, 7km, 891mm gauge (Site in Swedish with some information in English)

Metro, trams and local railways

• Stockholm Metro, trams, funiculars and local trains. Pendeltågen commuter service operated by SJ. Metro operated by MTR. Other local trains and some trams are operated by Transdev (City site in Swedish with some information in English; other sites in Swedish only)
• Göteborg trams, local and regional trains
• Lund trams (Site in Swedish)
• Norrköping trams, local and regional trains
• Uppsala proposed trams (Site in Swedish)