page_title: Ekeberg Line
section_title: Construction
hierarchical_section_title: Ekeberg Line / History / Construction
caption_attribution_description: English: The Ekeberg Line near Sjømannsskolen.
context_page_description: The Ekeberg Line is a 6.6-kilometre long light rail line of the Oslo Tramway which runs from Gamlebyen to Ljabru in Oslo, Norway. Operated by lines 18 and 19, it serves the area of Nordstrand and the neighborhoods of Ekeberg, Jomfrubråten, Bekkelaget and Ljan. The line is operated by Oslo Sporvognsdrift using SL79 and SL95 trams on contract with Ruter. The line itself is owned by Sporveien. At Oslo Hospital, the line connects to the Gamleby Line, which runs to the city center.
  Proposals for a line in the area were first launched 1897, but not until 1914 were the necessary permits granted. The line was built and operated by Ekebergbanen. The line opened in 1917, and connected to the Gamleby Line to reach Stortorvet in the city center. The line differed from the street trams in that it ran in its own right of way and used 1,200 volt supply, unlike the 600 volts used in the streets. In the early 1930s, the line was rebuilt to double track and a branch, the Simensbråten Line, was built. The Ekeberg Line was extended to its current terminus in 1941. In 1948, the company was taken over by the municipal Oslo Sporveier and operations were integrated in 1965.
context_section_description: The Nordstrand area of Aker was first served by steam ships from the 1860s, which connected the lower areas to Oslo. In 1879, the Østfold Line (then the Smaalen Line) opened in 1879, giving these areas a regular service unaffected by the weather. In 1897, a public meeting was held regarding transport in the upper parts of Nordstand, the Ekeberg area. On 15 March 1899, Solicitor Einar Borgen, Engineer A. J. Jackwitz and Robert Iversen sent an application to build an electric railway from Oslo to Ljan. They were later supplemented with Contractor S. Sørensen. The application was considered in Aker Municipal Council on 14 March 1901, and placed on hold. It was again considered a year later, this time it was placed on hold because the politicians wanted to see how the new Railway Act would affect the plans.
  A new application for the same route was made on 16 April 1907, this time from Solicitor H. M. Helliesen, Wholesaler A. Thune-Larsen, and Works Manager T. Poppe of Kristiania Sporveisselskab (KSS), the company which operated one the city tramways. This time the plans were slightly changed, with the route proposed built with a tramway rather than as a railway. In particular, the line was to connect to the Gamleby Line (then called the Oslo Line) of KSS's network and run up Ekeberg to an intersection between Ekeberveien and Kirkeveien. The plans called for a regular street tram with regular city tram vehicles. At the time, the city limits of Oslo went at Sjømannskolen. The application for the part within Oslo was sent to the city, while for the section outside the city, the application was sent to the Ministry of Labour. Within Oslo, a new line would only have to be built from Oslo Hospital to Sjømannskolen, while from Oslo Hospital to the city center, the line would follow the Gamleby Line.
  The plans were sent from the ministry to the municipality, whose council passed the plans on 12 November 1908. Among the conditions were that within five years, the municipality could demand that the line be extended to either Ljabru or Ljan. The concession was again considered on 2 November 1911, and there it was decided that the concession would be removed if the line was not finished by the end of 1914. However, in November 1911, Oslo City Council postponed their permissions while the issue was again made subject to reports on the issue. The report suggested a different route, which ran via Lodalen and up Ekebergsletta at Ekeberg hovedgård. After negotiations, the city agreed to allow the line to follow Kongsveien.
  The Labour Party rejected the line, stating that they did not want any transport that made it easier to live outside the municipal boundary, to keep tax money within the municipality. The final permission from Oslo City Council was granted after a vote with 49 to 35 in May 1913. Concession from the ministry was granted from Sjømannsskolen to Ljan on 7 October, and from Oslo Hospital to Sjømannsskolen on 11 December. On 5 June 1914, permission was granted where the concession was transferred from Thune-Larsen and Helliesen to the company Ekebergbanen, which was founded on 27 March 1914. The company received a share capital of NOK 850,000, later increased to 2.5 million. Engineer Jørgen Barth became the first director.
  Since the application, there had been a technological development within tramways. Barth started working with the plans, and proposed that the line be built as a light rail in its own right-of-way, similar to that of the Holmenkollen Line and the Røa Line on the west side of town. This would allow higher speeds. The plans called for the line to run on the east side of Kongsvien until Holtet, after which it would cross the road and continue on the west side Ekebergveien, until it reached Nordstrandsveien. The end of the line would have a balloon loop. After the revised plans were approved by the authorities, construction started in August 1914. Most of the works were finished in 1917. The original line consisted of double track from Oslo Hospital to Sjømannsskolen, and single track from Sjømannsskolen to Sæter.
caption: The Ekeberg Line at Sjømannsskolen in 1937
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