Flam Railway

The Flamsbana runs twenty kilometres from sea level at Flam up to Myrdal at 866 metres, a gradient of one in eighteen over most of its length, which makes it one of the steepest adhesion railways in the world, worked without rack or cable. It was built between 1924 and 1940, largely by hand, with twenty tunnels, eighteen of them dug without machinery, and one section where the line spirals inside the mountain to gain height. The journey takes about an hour each way, passing the Kjosfossen waterfall where the train stops for five minutes, and connects at Myrdal with the Bergen Railway. It carries around a million passengers a year, almost all of them tourists.

History

Branch lines from the Bergen Line to the fjords were part of Andreas Tanberg Gløersen's proposal of 1871, and the first surveys for a line down Flåmsdalen were made in 1893. Parliament approved the plans in 1916, construction started in 1924, the line opened in 1940, and electric traction came in 1944 (Wikipedia, Flåm Line).

What's there

• The gradient - a climb of 866 metres in twenty kilometres.
• The Kjosfossen stop - a five-minute halt at a 225-metre waterfall.
• The hand-dug tunnels - twenty tunnels, most cut without machinery.
• The spiral section - a turn inside the mountain to gain height.

When to go

May to September for the full schedule and the best chance of clear weather; the line runs year-round with fewer departures, and winter journeys through snow are striking. Summer departures book out.

Before you go

The train is crowded in season and seats are not guaranteed without booking. It is a tourist operation with prices to match. Cloud and rain, common here, obscure much of the valley. The Kjosfossen stop is brief and packed.

Nearby

Flam and the Aurlandsfjord are at the foot; Myrdal connects to the Bergen Railway and the Rallarvegen.

Key facts