Lahti–Heinola railway

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Lahti–Heinola railway
Heinola railway bridge (July 2018).jpg
The railway bridge crossing river Jyrängönvirta in Heinola
Overview
StatusOpen
OwnerFinnish government
LocalePäijät-Häme
TerminiLahti
Service
Operator(s)VR Group
History
Opened1 January 1932 (1932-01-01)
Passenger services ceased26 May 1968 (1968-05-26)
Technical
Line length37.4 km (23.2 mi)
Number of tracks1
Track gauge1,524 mm (5 ft)
ElectrificationNone
Operating speed50–60 km/h (31–37 mph)

The Lahti–Heinola railway (Finnish: Lahti–Heinola-rata, Swedish: Lahtis–Heinola-banan), also called the Heinola railway (Finnish: Heinolan rata, Swedish: Heinolabanan) is a 1,524 mm (5 ft) railway in Finland, connecting the towns and stations of Lahti and in the region of Päijät-Häme.[1]

History[]

The prospect of building a railway reaching from Lahti to Mikkeli via Heinola was brought up for the first time after the completion of the Riihimäki–Saint Petersburg railway. However, it took until 1909 for the Finnish parliament to make the initial decision about its construction, although the project budget would not be approved until 1926.[2]

The construction work on the railway was initiated on 10 September 1928. A significant part of the work on a 21 kilometres (13 mi) stretch was done by a workforce of prisoners:[3] 275 prisoners were situated in Ahtiala, 120 in Mäkelä, and 140 in Vierumäki. Each prisoner was entitled to a daily compensation of 30 markka, and were accommodated with health, hygiene, religious and educational services.[2]

It was originally planned to place the Heinola station on the west bank of the Jyrängönvirta, on the territory of the rural municipality of Heinola. In 1928, however, the Finnish government officialized a plan to extend the line further over the river, to have it reach the town limits. Even after the construction of the railway had been initiated in 1928, the exact placement of the bridge was subject to dispute; it took two more years for the construction of the bridge to begin.[1]

The line was opened for provisional traffic on 1 October 1931;[2] during this time, the station of Ränninmäki, later renamed Jyränkö, acted as the terminus of the line until the completion of the Jyrängönvirta bridge.[1] A formal inauguration ceremony was held on 10 September 1932, which featured a jubilee train carrying president Pehr Evind Svinhufvud and his spouse Ellen from Helsinki to Heinola. The celebration held a sentimental value to president Svinhufvud, thanks to his earlier tenure as a judge in the judicial district of Heinola in 1906–1908.[3]

Overview[]

The Lahti–Heinola railway stretches approximately 37.4 kilometres (23.2 mi) long, consists of one track for its entire length, has a top speed limit of 50–60 km/h (31–37 mph), and is unelectrified. While the line has had several stations in the past, in the present the stations of Lahti and Heinola are the only ones where cargo loading and unloading activities occur: the operating points of the Vierumäki and Myllyoja stations are still active, though they are only used for the purposes of track maintenance. The only regular user of the line in the present is the Stora Enso paperboard factory in Heinola.[4]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c Iltanen, Jussi (2010). Radan varrella: Suomen rautatieliikennepaikat (in Finnish). Karttakeskus. ISBN 978-951-593-214-3.
  2. ^ a b c Mäkelä, Anneli (1991). "5.2.1. Turha vai tuottava rautatie Lahdesta Heinolaan?". Nastolan historia III (in Finnish). Municipality of Nastola. ISBN 951-96240-1-5.
  3. ^ a b Mantere, Heikki (20 August 2006). "Heinola odotti rataa liki 50 vuotta". Etelä-Suomen Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 10 April 2021.
  4. ^ Voutilainen, Jarkko; Peni-Nyman, Anniina; Kiiskinen, Lauri (2020). Vähäliikenteiset radat: Tilanne ja tulevaisuus 2020 (PDF). Helsinki: Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency. pp. 29–36. ISBN 978-952-317-789-5.

External links[]

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