Gårdsjö – Mariestad railway line

Gårdsjö – Mariestad
Route number :	VGJ
Route length:	39 km
Gauge :	891 mm, from 1961: 1435 mm
Operating points and routes
Legend Västra stambanan from Hallsberg 0.000 Gårdsjö Västra stambanan to Herrljunga 3,600 Nockerud 8.730 Hova 12.092 Fagerlid Torved – Gullspång railway from Gullspång 16.845 Torved (formerly Bhf.) 21.024 Lyrestad Göta Canal 27.70 Tjos 30.640 Hasslerör (formerly Bhf.) 33.30 Hassle-Säby Mariestad hamnspåret 39.045 Mariestad (1874) Mariestad – Moholms Järnväg after (1874) Moholm Mariestad – Gössäter railway line to Forshem

The railway line Gårdsjö – Mariestad was a 1910 from Västergötland – Göteborgs järnvägsaktiebolag put into operation narrow-gauge railway line between Mariestad and Gössäter in Skaraborgs län in Sweden . It was one of the few lines that VGJ built itself.

It is part of the Gårdsjö – Håkantorp railway in Västergötland , which has been called Kinnekullebanan since the name reform of the Swedish railway lines by Banverket in 1990 .

history

Before the turn of the 20th century, the idea arose of connecting the narrow-gauge networks in Västergötland and Göteborgs och Bohus län in order to upgrade the entire network and open up the hinterland of the city of Gothenburg . This resulted in the foundation of the VGJ, which built some railway lines itself and connected numerous narrow-gauge island networks by renting or buying them. On January 1, 1900, the Gothenburg – Skara line and the Pedersbacke (Tumleberg) –Håkantorp line were opened to public transport.

From Skara, the line on the Vänern was extended by the purchase of the Skara – Hönsäters hamn railway line built by the Skara – Kinnekulle – Vänerns Järnväg (SKWJ) on January 1, 1904.

Purchase of the Mariestad – Kinnekulle Järnväg (MKJ)

Since VGJ bought SKWJ in 1904 and integrated it into its own operations, the next step was to merge VGJ and MKJ. The initiative came from KG Wallenius. The aim was to reach Mariestad by a direct route under the same administration from Gothenburg via Skara.

On August 22, 1908, the deed of purchase was signed, with which VGJ acquired MKJ for 445,136 crowns and 85 ore. This company's route has been fully integrated into the operations. This provided the basis for VGJ to build a line from Mariestad via Torved to Gårdsjö or alternatively via Torved to Gullspång. With the purchase agreement, the entire MKJ staff was taken over. The rolling stock was integrated into the VGJ numbering scheme.

The extension to Gårdsjö

When in 1905 the plans for a line Skara – Timmersdala – Mariestad were discussed, an extension of the VGJ from Mariestad via Lyrestad to Gullspång was discussed. This year VGJ applied for a concession for this route to Gullspång's station owned by Nora Bergslags Järnväg (NBJ). The license was granted on September 28, 1906.

The Mariestad – Torved route

In the second half of 1907 the Mariestad – Torved section was marked out. There was no longer any interest in building the line to Gullspång. The reason for this was that NBJ had received a concession for a standard gauge line between Otterbäcken and Töreboda. This would have run almost parallel to the VGJ's approved Torved – Gullspång route.

The Torved – Gårdsjö route

Since the VGJ had the concession for the route Mariestad – Torved – Gullspång since 1906, there were a number of interested parties, including the governor of Skaraborgs län, F. de Geer, who applied for a concession for the route Gårdsjö – Torved. Drawings and cost estimates for this route had already been made by the engineer JA Jonzon in Leksberg. After negotiations with these interested parties, VGJ took over this concession on October 30, 1908.

Construction of the Mariestad – Torved – Gårdsjö line

Now VGJ had the concession for the entire route. In a cost estimate, Captain Nystrom calculated 1,125,000 crowns for the construction. With the engineer JA Jonzon as the responsible site manager, the work began in early 1908. At the end of the year, starting from Mariestad, 20.227 kilometers had been laid and 11.070 kilometers had rails. The rails weighed 17.4 kg per meter and were previously in use on the section north of Gothenburg. There they had meanwhile been replaced by rails weighing 25 kg per meter. On January 1, 1910, the 39-kilometer route was opened to public transport.

The train station in Gårdsjö was financed by VGJ and later used by Statens Järnvägar . The Göta Canal was crossed with a swing bridge at Lyrestad north of Mariestad .

JA Andersson began construction on September 29, 1915. The drawings were made by Nyström and the cost was estimated at 610,000 crowns. On January 1, 1917, the line was opened for public transport.

nationalization

The line was taken over by Statens Järnvägar in 1948 as part of the general nationalization of the railway, like other narrow-gauge lines in Skaraborgs län, and integrated into their network and organization. The conversion to standard gauge took place in 1961.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mariestad – Torved – Gårdsjö. Bandel 424, SJ district 36 bs. In: banvakt.se. Retrieved July 29, 2014 (Swedish). 
2. ↑ Station maps to Stig Lundin
3. ↑ Järnvägar i historien 1948

Web links

• Line map at Stig Lundin (swed.)