Tvärbanan

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Geographically accurate map of the system.

The tram stop at Liljeholmen with a Bombardier Flexity Swift electric train. The entrance to the Metro station can be seen in the background

A Bombardier Flexity Swift at Sickla Udde

Tvärbanan is a tram line in Stockholm, Sweden. Its name literally translated into English is Crossways line. It links together many bus and rail lines crossways through its connections with the southern, western and northern subway branches of the Stockholm Metro (Tunnelbana) and the Stockholm commuter rail (Pendeltåg). The possibility to travel between southern, western and northern greater Stockholm without having to enter the city centre significantly reduces the number of transit passengers, also reducing the number of trains having to pass through the Old Town bottleneck during peak hours. Near Liljeholmen the track is shared with freight traffic in a short section, this being the only place in Sweden where freight traffic and trams share the same track.

The tramway is separated from roads in most parts, but there are sections in Gröndal, Sundbyberg and Solna where the tracks run on roads among regular road traffic. In Hammarby sjöstad the trams run in a reservation in the centre of the road rather than in mixed traffic, but there are several level crossings.

Traffic on Tvärbanan started in 2000, first between Gullmarsplan and Liljeholmen, then later between Liljeholmen and Alvik, in 2002 between Gullmarsplan and , and in 2013 between Alvik and Solna centrum. It has later been extended to Solna Station (2014), Sickla (2017) and most recently, Bromma Airport (2021), the last of which being the first part of the new Kista branch. Tvärbanan was used by around 108,000 passengers per weekday in 2019.^[1]

The bridges used by Tvärbanan include Alviksbron, Gröndalsbron, Fredriksdalsbron and  [sv].

Lines[]

Tvärbanan has two lines (30 and 31). L30 with 26 stops, going from Sickla south of the Stockholm city centre through Gullmarsplan,  [sv], Liljeholmen, Gröndal, Stora Essingen, Alvik west of the city centre, and Sundbyberg to Solna. The part to Solna Centrum opened 28 October 2013, and the final part to Solna Station opened 18 August 2014.^[2] A single-stop extension from Sickla udde to Sickla opened on 2 October 2017.^[3] The Friends Arena can be reached within 15 minutes' walk from there. Bromma Airport is a 600-metre walk from Karlsbodavägen stop.

Main interchange options[]

• Solna Station
  • Commuter rail lines 40, 41, 42
• Solna centrum
  • Metro blue line 11
• Sundbybergs centrum
  • Metro blue line 10
  • Commuter rail lines 43, 44
• Alvik
  • 

    Tvärbanan train passing over Sickla Canal
    Metro green lines 17, 18 and 19
  • Nockebybanan (light rail line 12)
• Liljeholmen
  • Metro red lines 13 and 14
• • Commuter rail lines 40, 41, 42, 43 and 44
• Gullmarsplan
  • Metro green lines 17, 18 and 19
  • A large number of bus routes to Tyresö, Haninge, and Södermalm
• Sickla
  • Saltsjöbanan (suburban rail line 25)

Rolling stock[]

Bombardier vehicle (№474), in 2013.

Thirty-seven Bombardier Flexity Swift low-floor trams run on the line (locally called A32). Six of them (432-437) are second hand and imported in 2010 from the RijnGouweLijn-project in the Netherlands. Fifteen new trams were ordered from CAF (locally called A35) and they started operation in October 2013 on the Solna extension.

Signalling system[]

CAF vehicle (№474), 2019.

A signalling system monitors and controls the movements of rolling stock on a rail network to ensure safe operation. Tvärbanan previously suffered from a long-standing issue of incompatible and low performing rail signalling systems. The Tvärbanan network featured multiple different signalling systems from different vendors, because when the rail line was built, the signalling systems were tendered separately for each construction stage. A visible example of this was at the Alvik station, which was a break point between two systems. Even though the line runs straight at Alvik, the same train could not be run past the station because of the incompatibility of the systems. Passengers had to switch trains there. The section south of Alvik was closed during the summer of 2017 to upgrade the signalling.^[4]

Extension[]

Construction on a branch line to Kista and started in February 2018.^[5] The new branch was scheduled to open its first part to Bromma Airport in December 2020,^[6] however this was postponed, as approval from Swedavia was needed in order for the trams to be able to run past the airport.^[7] In cold weather, sparks arise from the trams' overhead contact line, which could disrupt radio signals in the air traffic control tower at Bromma Airport. Tests needed to be carried out in sub-zero temperatures to gain approval for traffic.^[8]

The first part of the new branch opened on 17th May 2021, with trams running on Line 31 between Alviks strand and Bromma flygplats.^[9]

New Stops[]

Bromma Blocks[]

Bromma flygplats[]

Gallery[]

• 

  Årstadal

• 

  Tunnel Near Alvik

• 

  Tram Near Traneberg Tunnel

• 

  Tram Arriving at Alvik

• 

  CAF A35 Interior

• 

  Stora Essingen

• 

  Tram Near Traneberg Tunnel

• 

  Johannesfred

• 

  Tram Near Liljeholmen

• 

  Globen

See also[]

• List of tram and light-rail transit systems
• Public transport in Stockholm
• Trams in Stockholm

References[]

External links[]

• Simplified line map - Official site (Swedish)
• Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (Stockholm Transport) - Official site (Swedish)
• Stockholm county's page about Tvärbanan - Official site (Swedish)