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THE SCANDINAVIAN
8
MILLION CITY
OPENING THE DOOR TO EUROPE – AND THE WORLD
Scandinavia lies on the fringes of Europe – but it has the potential to demonstrate
world-class innovations and competitiveness.
By connecting Oslo and Copenhagen with high-speed trains via Gothenburg and Malmö,
an extensive, strong and coherent labour market area can be formed. This will allow
Scandinavia to compete with the major European and global metropolises in earnest.
THE SCANDINAVIAN COUNTRIES have for a long time been able to hold their own against international competition with their top-class knowledge and skills, creating environments which act as a breeding ground for growth, development and prosperity. In an increasingly globalised economy the demand for efficiency and mobility is increasing. Bigger and stronger regions are need-ed to attract and retain people and companies who will create the wealth of the future. Fast, efficient and sustainable transport solutions are needed to connect these regions together.
The Scandinavian 8 Million City is an EU project which ad-dresses the need for new thinking and new investments to resolve the transport needs of the future – both for passengers and for goods transport.
TODAY IT TAKES around 8 hours to get from Oslo to Copenha-gen by train, with a change in Gothenburg. To continue on to continental Europe, more changes are required with considerably longer travel times. The capacity limits for goods on the roads has also already been reached – without new solutions the business sector will lose international competitiveness.
By establishing a new rail link between Oslo and Copenhagen, which can operate both high-speed and intercity trains, the travel times can be drastically reduced to only 2.5 hours. Furthermore, this will enable huge capacity for freight transport and regional trains. A green transport corridor can therefore be created and the whole map redrawn.
THE ADVANTAGES OF The Scandinavian 8 Million City are obvious. This is about connecting several of Scandinavia’s most important metropolitan areas and knowledge environments and making them into one collective and strong innovation and
labour market area. Four metropolitan regions, of which two are capital cities, will get an efficient and sustainable transport system that opens up the possibility to live in some of Europe’s most attractive areas, while simultaneously gaining access to one of the world’s most exciting labour markets. You could easily live in the Gothenburg region and commute to Norway or Den-mark – or vice versa. Companies, organisations, universities and colleges will find it easier to find staff and researchers with the right expertise. All kinds of businesses will be able to establish themselves in attractive locations for reasonable prices. At the same time, the foundations are in place for flexible connections to an improved communications network within the region, as well as joining fast connections to other regions such as Stock-holm and Hamburg.
As many of the long distance journeys in the region will move over to intercity and high-speed trains, space will be made avail-able for freight transport to move from the roads to the current rail network. This will increase accessibility, improve traffic safety, and drastically reduce the impact of transport on the environment and climate.
All in all the benefits for society will far outweigh the investment required.
THE SCANDINAVIAN 8 MILLION CITY is a unique project in many respects. It is one of the largest collective efforts to develop and modernise an infrastructure ever seen in Europe. Municipal-ities, regions and state authorities from three different countries are all working together to create a collective innovation and labour market area, based on future needs and demands rather than on national boundaries.
By looking ahead and seeing future opportunities, the full poten-tial of one of Europe’s most dynamic regions can be utilised. This does not only benefit residents and companies in the corridor but is beneficial for Scandinavia and Europe as a whole.
OSLO
GÖTEBORG
STOCKHOLM
BERGEN
TRONDHEIM
HAMBURG
STAV
ANGER
KØBENHA
VN
MALMÖ
HALMSTAD BORÅS JÖNK ÖP ING LINK ÖP ING NORRK ÖP ING HELSINGBORG SARPSBORG TROLLHÄTTANHELSINGFORS
WELCOME TO THE SCANDINAVIAN 8 MILLION CITY!
Several of the strongest growth regions in Europe can be found in Scandinavia. To ensure they keep growing and developing, they must address a number of important challenges:
• Accessibility must be improved on both roads and railway to meet the demands for increased efficiency and mobility. To achieve this, greater rail capacity is needed for both passengers and freight transport.
• The impact on the environment and climate from the transport sector must be drastically reduced, mainly by transferring more traffic over to the rail system. • The metropolitan areas need to be connected to
big-ger, more coherent labour market areas in order to compete with the major cities and regions in Europe and the world.
WHAT WILL BE ACHIEVED?
The Scandinavian 8 Million City aims to obtain a collective Scandinavian agreement for the financing and development of intercity and high-speed trains on the Oslo-Gothenburg-Copen-hagen route. In total this means approximately 600 km of double-track railway to be built.
WHY CONNECT?
To stand up to increasingly tough global competition, it is vitally important that an effective labour market area is created which can attract the most important companies and the best skills. 8 million people live along the Oslo-Copenhagen corridor via Gothenburg and Malmö, as well as 29 universities and col-leges and a growth of 44,000 new companies per year. In-depth collaboration creates better opportunities for innovation and growth.
WHY SO IMPORTANT?
The Oslo-Copenhagen passage is not just important for the residents and companies in the vicinity, but it also functions as an important gateway to and from Europe for the rest of Scan-dinavia. The majority of goods transported by land in Norway come via this route, and a third of Swedish foreign trade as well as 60 percent of all container traffic in Sweden passes through Gothenburg port.
A development of the intercity line and tracks for high-speed trains would connect the corridor to a coherent labour market. This would make Scandinavia a more attractive and viable loca-tion for people, companies, internaloca-tional business and invest-ments.
With faster rail traffic Copenhagen’s airport, Kastrup, would also become more accessible and competitive. The airport is the most important in Scandinavia for international traffic and a third of its passengers already come from Sweden. More people would be able to reach Copenhagen’s airport quickly and smoothly thanks to high-speed trains.
When the tunnel under the Fehmarn Belt is ready in 2021, it will open up entirely new possibilities for connection to Europe. Scandinavian high-speed trains would be able to connect with the entire European rail network thanks to a fixed link between Denmark and Germany.
The close cooperation and interconnection of the three Scan-dinavian capital cities is a necessary step for getting closer to enable various sections to gradually come together in a collective modern railway system.
WHO ARE THE WINNERS?
In general there are increasing demands for the mobility of both people and goods. This means that an investment in more ef-ficient infrastructure will be of crucial importance for develop-ment along the entire corridor. There will be greater availability
through being able to reach a select number of key locations quickly while the current rail network is simultaneously relieved. This gives scope for faster short distance transportation which benefits localisation of operations as well as residency outside of the major cities.
HOW LONG ARE THE TRAVEL TIMES?
On a high-speed train from Oslo to Copenhagen the travel time is estimated to be 2.5 hours via Gothenburg and Malmö. The travel time between Oslo and Gothenburg and also Gothenburg and Copenhagen is estimated to be 75 minutes. A passenger base of 9.4 million per year is expected in 2024, according to forecast estimates.
WHAT IS THE IMPACT ON THE
ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE?
Many will be able to choose the train instead of planes or cars, and in doing so will contribute to reducing emissions and impact on the climate. At the same time positive effects will be seen as industry and trade move their goods from the road to the railway. With better rail links people can be more mobile without increas-ing the burden on the environment, while connectincreas-ing a more sustainable and competitive region.
WHEN WILL EVERYTHING BE READY?
The big challenge of the project is to get a collective Scandinavian decision. Analyses from the project show that with the help of modern technology the construction process can be streamlined and the construction phase could be completed in four years. At the same time, interference with the surrounding environment and encroachment on the land is limited as large parts of the construction are done in connection with existing motorways and/or on concrete bridges 5–10 metres above the ground.
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
The cost of building an intercity and high-speed railway between Oslo and Copenhagen via Gothenburg and Malmö can be mini-mised using modern and cost-effective construction methods. The project is calculated to cost around NOK 100 billion. Work is underway to find a collective Scandinavian financial solution and to guarantee the quality of the socioeconomic profitability assessments. Analyses to date indicate that from the start, the passenger base along the route is estimated to amount to 9.4 mil-lion passengers per year.
MALMÖ
Centralstationen Nationaltheatret Majorstuen Ullevål stadion Forskningsparken Blindern Tøyen Stortinget Grønland 5 3 2 4 2 1Carl Berners plass
6 Storo Østerås Bekkestua Bergkrystallen Østfold Mortensrud Lufthavnen Kastrup Airport Klampenborg Hillerød Farum Fredrikssund Høje Taastrup Torp Mölndal Kålltorp
GÖTEBORG
CentralstationenOSLO
Jernbanetorget (Oslo S) Tynnered Västra Götaland Halland Helsingborg Helsingør Angered Borås Bergsjön 4 7 5 C 1 Bx I I C I 5 4 3 Trelleborg Triangeln Hyllie Ystad Lund 3 2 71:15
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN OSLO TILL GÖTEBORG MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
1:15
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN GÖTEBORG TILL KÖPENHAMN MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
2:00
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN GÖTEBORG TILL STOCKHOLM MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
2:35
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN MALMÖ TILL STOCKHOLM MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN KÖPENHAMN TILL HAMBURG MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
Akershus
1:30
5 M 2KØBENHAVN
Hovedbanegården Bx Länsmansgården HässleholmMALMÖ
Centralstationen Nationaltheatret Majorstuen Ullevål stadion Forskningsparken Blindern Tøyen Stortinget Grønland 5 3 2 4 2 1Carl Berners plass
6 Storo Østerås Bekkestua Bergkrystallen Østfold Mortensrud Lufthavnen Kastrup Airport Klampenborg Hillerød Farum Fredrikssund Høje Taastrup Torp Mölndal Kålltorp
GÖTEBORG
CentralstationenOSLO
Jernbanetorget (Oslo S) Tynnered Västra Götaland Halland Helsingborg Helsingør Angered Borås Bergsjön 4 7 5 C 1 Bx I I C I 5 4 3 Trelleborg Triangeln Hyllie Ystad Lund 3 2 71:15
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN OSLO TILL GÖTEBORG MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
1:15
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN GÖTEBORG TILL KÖPENHAMN MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
2:00
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN GÖTEBORG TILL STOCKHOLM MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
2:35
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN MALMÖ TILL STOCKHOLM MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
PLANERAD RESTID FRÅN KÖPENHAMN TILL HAMBURG MED HÖGHASTIGHETSTÅG
Akershus
1:30
5 M 2KØBENHAVN
Hovedbanegården Bx Länsmansgården HässleholmLONG, FAST, SHORT AND WELL CONNECTED
The demand for accessibility and the increased need for mobility require a complex network with well-developed infrastructure. Both people and goods must be transported quickly, safely and without major envi-ronmental impact. For best efficiency in the long-term, investments are needed to enable traffic separation, so that longer distance, faster forms of transport have their own system. Capacity is therefore freed up on the existing rail network, which means there is more room for goods and public transport, and the reliability of this system is also increased.
To meet future demand it is not enough to consider just one track, it should be both options.
Phase 1
Development of Intercity trains in order to improve capacity and reliability for all forms of rail transport.
Phase 2
Development of high-speed trains in order to make the railway more competitive over longer distances and to free up more room for freight transport and shorter passenger journeys.
Phase 3
A larger collective labour market with greater global competi-tiveness built in a secure and environmentally friendly way.
EUROPEAN UNION European Regional Development Fund
... Copenhagen’s airport, Kastrup, is Scandinavia’s most important hub for international air traffic? Accessi-bility to the airport therefore plays a vital role in the development and competitiveness of Scandinavia as a whole.
... the Oslo-Gothenburg-Copenhagen route is Norway’s most important export and import corridor? 60% of all goods transported by land to and from Norway pass along this route. Every day 2,200 trucks cross the Norwegian-Swedish border at Svinesund.
... a high-speed railway only requires a third of the space in the landscape needed for a motorway?
... more than 50 percent of Scandinavia’s industrial capacity is within a 300 km radius of Gothenburg?
... the Fehmarn-Belt connection is expected to be completed by 2021. On a high-speed train the travel time between Copenhagen and Hamburg would be 2.5 hours.
... a major disadvantage of flying is that the regions in between are no closer to the major city regions of Copenhagen/Malmö, Gothenburg/Oslo compared to an alternative corridor operating high-speed trains.
... high-speed trains are 9 times more energy effi-cient than flying and 4 times more than a car. Average emissions of carbon dioxide per person for a route of 600 km, equivalent to Oslo-Copenhagen, is 80 kilos, compared to 13 kilos for a high-speed train. ... both in Sweden and the EU, the aim is to transfer 30% of freight transport on distances over 300 km from roads to railways by 2030 and 50% by 2050.
