Big changes in December timetable

With just six days (at the time of writing) to go until the December 12 timetable change, DSB says that it has responded to passenger demands, with new and more frequent services, better connections and a cascade of rolling stock as the IC4s gradually enter service.

Amongst the highlights (full details can be found here) are a 20 minute cut in journey times between Struer and Copenhagen, thanks to eliminating lightly used stops. For passengers between Esbjerg and Copenhagen the service is ramped up to make it 'virtually' hourly through the day, and direct trains between Aarhus and Kolding will run to Esbjerg, providing an hourly service in the daytime. For passengers in Jutland these changes will make a big difference.

Flensburg, meanwhile, joins the inter-city network with  a two-hourly service to Copenhagen, while passengers from Vamdrup and Tinglev will see an hourly train. New Desiro trains, meanwhile, will begin operation to Grenaa from the timetable change too. Two additional expresses between Copenhagen and Odense-Aarhus will run in the afternoon in response to growing demand, and non-stop trains from Copenhagen to Aarhus are extended in the morning and evening to Aalborg.

A suite of improvements to commuter services around Copenhagen are expected to cut journey times, but journey times to and from Bornholm will be extended by between 10 and 30 minutes due to changes to the ferry operation and the opening of the Malmö Citytuneln.

"This year we have the opportunity to both extend the improvements we introduced in the last timetable and come up with new travel opportunities," says DSB Deputy Director of Traffic Planning Ove Dahl Kristensen.

Apologies for the lack of updates....

Sincere apologies for the lack of updates on the blog over the past month - normal service resumes from today.

Danish Rail News

Femern Link: tunnel will be cheaper than bridge

The proposed three span suspension bridge proposed for the Femern Link is now expected to be more expensive than the alternative tunnel proposal. The bridge is now estimated to cost DKr 38.5 billion and the tunnel DKr 37.9 billion at 2008 prices.

Femern A/S, the company behind the project, presented the surprise findings at a meeting with political backers. It follows an extensive investigation into the construction options. The changes in cost are partly due to underground geology not being as stable as thought originally. This has resulted in a rethink with other solutions being examined.

Politicians generally seem to prefer a bridge solution as it is more visible than a tunnel. However, whichever form the crossing takes, it has been delayed by two years due to increased environmental investigation demands. Opening is now scheduled for 2020, which means a potential loss of DKr 4 billion in revenue, as well as expenditure of DKr 800 million for additional consultations.

Top to bottom: cross section of the proposed Femern bridge; an overall view of it; a cross section of the alternative tunnel.

Esbjerg examines high-frequency services

Plans are being examined by the municipality of Esbjerg, Denmark’s off shore activity city on the west coast of Jutland and its neighbouring municipality of Varde into the viability of establishing a high frequency local train service between Ribe-Bramminge-Esbjerg-Varde.

The service between these towns is currently an hourly service run by Arriva from Niebüll (Germany) Tønder Ribe, and Esbjerg and a similar service from Esbjerg north to Skjern. This service would be integrated in the new local service. A possible integration of the local service from Varde to Oksbøl in the new service is also being considered.

Free travel for 'Night Owls'

DSB showed its community responsibility last week by providing free travel for ‘Night Owls’ across the entire Danish rail network.

The Night Owl system started in 1998 and has now 7000 active participants in over 200 local groups. The concept is for "responsible and credible adults" to circulate in towns at the weekend on a voluntary basis and chat with young people on their way to and from parties in order to create a feeling of security to both the young people and others and generally nip trouble in the bud.

The Night Owls also circulate, uniformed and in groups of at least three, on local public transport and may travel free between 18.00 and 06.00.

Femern Link loses DKr 550 million support

A European Union Commission has cut DKr 550 million from support allotted to the preliminary design stage of the link across the Femern Belt between Denmark and Germany because they are of the opinion that preparation works of the link are delayed.

The news was announced when the Commission published its interim report on the allocation of the DKr 60 billion DKr TEN-T funds are to allotted from 2007 to 2013. Denmark had been promised approx DKr 2.5 billion towards the preliminary investigations of the project, of which EU covers 50%, but part of the work connected with the preliminary investigations has moved to the construction phase. EU support can only be granted for work already carried out in the period.

It is possible that Denmark can reapply for the grant in the next period starting in 2014. The CEO for Femern A/S, Leo Larsen, is already negotiating with the EU commission about this. 

Bombardier's Øresund trains delivered in 'unsatisfactory quality' says Transport Minister

The first five of 10 new Bombardier trains for DSB First´s services on the Copenhagen Coast line and to Sweden over the Øresund link have not only been delivered late but with many faults - and the sixth train delivered has so many faults that DSB refused to accept it. The finding appears in a notat to the Danish parliament´s permanent traffic commitee, from the minister of transport Hans Christian Schmidt.

"The trains have been delivered in a generally unsatisfactory quality. I consider the situation worrying and will pursue the matter with DSB," says the minister in his report.

At the moment DSB expects the last of the 10 trains ordered to be delivered by 9 December 2010. After some modifications they expect to place them all in operation by 16 December - in other words, after the introduction of the 2011 timetable and the opening of the Citytuneln in Malmö when the new 10 minute interval service between Copenhagen and Malmö/Lund starts.

The new trains are vital to ensure a necessary reserve capacity, enabling introduction of longer trains, better regularity, and guarantee a seat in the rush hour.

DSB cuts 140 administrative jobs

Cost pressures are being blamed for DSB's decision to cut 140 administrative jobs following consultation with trades unions.

The decision follows the Sporskifte 2010 programme, and is in addition to 200 similar positions lost two years ago. The company says in a press release that the move will 'make the company more competitive' and allow it to focus on customer-facing initiatives.

Around 40 of the posts will be lost in January when the maintenance activities of DSB and DSB S-tog are merged in a separate company (see here for Danish Rail News' story).

New Communications Director at DSB

The former Managing Editor for Metro, Jakob Høyer, will take charge of DSB's communications from November 1 in his new role as Communications Director. Mr Høyer, 39, replaces Anna Vinding, who takes on a part time role as Chief Consultant.

Jakob Høyer managed the free Metro newspaper for four years, and has worked in a host of roles on newspapers and as special advisor to the one-time Minister of Culture Brian Mikkelsen. "DSB is undergoing a huge change. Communication is at the heart of the change process and it will be interesting to tell DSB staff as well as the wider world what the company is doing," he says.

Jakob Høyer: image courtesy of DSB.

Kass head's DSB's new maintenance company

DSB Finance Director Bartal Kass is to become the Chief Executive of a new train maintenance and repair company which will handle rolling stock across DSB's operations. The separation of maintenance from operations is expected to allow greater focus of management in each of these sectors.

Forty-eight-year-old Kass has worked in DSB since 1995, mainly in finance, and DSB CEO Soren Eriksen explained the appointment: "After 15 years in DSB Bartal Kass a thorough knowledge of the entire company and is therefore the best placed to optimize the complex maintenance tasks and get them to work together in the new organization."

The new company comprises 1200 staff and five major workshops - two in Aarhus, one in Fredericia, another in Taastrup and the last in Copenhagen. Kass' first major task will be to integrate maintenance between DSB and DSB S-tog while maintaining reliability and availability levels.

"By pooling the expertise we can make the best of both organizations," says Bartal Kass: "We can do things more effectively and consistently across the new organization."

Bartal Kass: image courtesy of DSB.

DSB wins new Swedish passenger contract

DSB Sweden has beaten Deutsche Bahn, Veolia, and Tågkompaniet AB to win the Upptåget regional passenger contract for a period of 10 years, six months, and means that one in four DSB customers will be Swedish when the concession starts on June 12 2011. The turnover is expected to be around SKr 80 million per year.

The contract reinforces DSB's position in Sweden - where it operates over more route-km of railway - 2500km - than the entire Danish rail network of around 1700km. The announcement comes two months before DSB begins operation of the Gothenburg Västtrafik and Jönköping Krösatåg concessions. Denmark's national railway has operated the Stockholm Roslagsbanan since 2003 as well as Øresund services in Southern Sweden and the number of train-km of its Swedish operations is greater than that of Denmark's entire regional network.

DSB CEO Soren Eriksen said: "Sweden is already our second home, and with the takeover of operations of Upptåget, expands DSB now further its position in Sweden. DSB won the tender because we offer the most advantageous price and thereby benefit from synergies with the DSB's ongoing activities." 

"Sweden is already our second home:" DSB CEO Soren Erikson. Image courtesy of DSB

Aalborg-Frederikshavn receives interim signalling system

New 'temporary' signalling equipment is being installed between Aalborg and Frederikshavn ahead of the planned rollout of European Rail Traffic Management System from 2016.
The existing equipment is said to be obsolete and increasingly hard to maintain (in common with many similar installations from the late 1960s/early 1970s). A consortium of CactusUniView and Bravida are replacing the existing system with a PC-based equivalent, and installation is due to be completed in November 2011.

DSB restores TV to S-Trains, minus sound

After massive complaints about onboard television screens disrupting journeys because of their intrusive audio - which prompted the company to halt the technology's use - DSB is set to restore the service without the sound.

Customer surveys suggested many passengers valued the provision of news and information, and the onboard displays will now only feature these services.

DSB takes over IC4 upgrades

Fourteen of DSB's problematic AnsaldoBreda IC4 diesel trains are to be upgraded and modified in DSB's own workshops rather than in Italy under a deal confirmed this morning, the value of which is undisclosed. 

Danish Rail News understands it is the largest contract awarded to the DSB's maintenance arm DSB Togvedligeholdelse to date.

The surprise move will allow the trains - which were delivered in 2007-09 - to undergo more testing and regulatory examinations than if they have to return to AnsaldoBreda's Italian factory for interim modifications. It should, DSB hopes, allow the trains to enter full revenue earning service sooner. Amongst other problems, these 14 trains are unable to work in multiple and have proved unable to match present day reliability requirements. DSB expects to hire additional engineers and fitters for the project.

CEO Soren Eriksen says: "We are very pleased with this order and are pleased, of course, first and foremost that the deal means more IC4 trains for the Danes. For DSB it means that we gain a more thorough knowledge of the trains in advance of final deliveries. By not sending the trains to Italy for modification we achieve greater flexibility as we have more trains available to operate and test and this provides further impetus to development of the new train computer and attempts to link three or more trains together."

DSB Togvedligeholdelse was recently awarded a contract to refurbish 16 trains for the Norwegian Airport Express Train., the second such deal the organisation has won from Norway.

 IC4: stylish but delayed. Image: Danish Rail News

DSB sets record punctuality level of 93.7%

DSB staff are celebrating a monthly punctuality record for long distance and regional trains of 93.7% of trains arriving on time - the highest figure since operational performance has been measured.

Traffic Manager Stig Friisbæk says 'hard and focused work every day' is responsible for the upswing in punctuality, allied with a close working relationship between DSB and Banedanmark staff. "We have a good work ethic and spirit," he adds.

Director of Traffic Planning Ove Dahl Kristensen was also delighted with the performance: "Banedanmark should definitely have a lot of credit for it here. Fewer local speed reductions due to improved rail has been the main reason for the great result. Meanwhile, the very close cooperation established between Banedanmark and DSB has provided fantastic results."

DSB acknowledges that it will be hard to maintain this level of performance, with the annual leaf fall season beginning to get underway, and long range predictions of a harsh winter.

"Very close cooperation between Banedanmark and DSB has provided fantastic results." Director of Traffic Planning Ove Dahl Kristensen. Image courtesy of DSB/Sine Fiig

 DSB train punctuality, September 2006-10. Image courtesy of DSB

New appointments at DSB

DSB has made some new appointments. Anders Ditzel is Rejsekort (travel card) supporter while Hans Henrik Rasmussen is Data Warehouse System Developer.

Congratulations to both of them on their new roles.

Breaking news - SJ starts Copenhagen-Odense service from Monday

Sweden's national operator SJ will start a new service from Copenhagen to Odense from Monday, October 11.

The service will consist of one round trip per day with X2000 trains and will be an extension of one of the Stockholm-Copenhagen services. There will be no improvements in journey timing in spite of the X2000s' ability to run at 200km/h as the infrastructure only allows 180km/h - which DSB already runs at with its IC3/IC4 intercity and ER4 electric regional trains.

Malmo prepares for Citytuneln opening

Malmö's long awaited capacity increasing Citytuneln project has started trial operations in anticipation of full services within Sweden and to Denmark beginning on December 12 at the Winter timetable change. A pair of Alstom X61 Electric Multiple Units - popularly called Pågatåg - and operated by Arriva are in use but will not be allowed to cross over to Denmark.

The project is an impressive feat of engineering, with the construction of around 17km of double track electrified railway in the heart of Malmö (6km of which is in tunnels) and the creation of two new stations - Hyllie and the centrally located Triangeln, which is much more convenient for the city centre than the present Malmö C. station. Construction began five years ago at an estimated cost of SEK 8.56 billion (DKK 6.9 billion) and has been completed months ahead of the original December 2010 deadline.

Transformed services

The success of the Øresund link from Copenhagen, as well as a major increase in local traffic in Malmo, mean the city's rail network has been bursting at the seams for some years, but from December 12, the significant extra capacity is going to transform services.

That day, when the tunnel opens for regular traffic, DSB First will double the frequency of the daytime service between Denmark and Malmö - and beyond - to a 10 minute interval service. The opening of the tunnel will mean a reduction of up to four minutes in journey times between Copenhagen and Malmö but a much more noticeable reduction - of more than 20 minutes - between Copenhagen and Lund because of the elimination of the reversal in Malmö.

However, plans to run Pågatåg services from Ystad through Malmö via the Citytunnel has been postponed until late next summer, due to the recent decision to start similar services to Trelleborg in 2012. This decision necessitates doubling the connecting line south of Hyllie - and this is happening now in order to prevent disruption of Ystad services in the future. Two new stations and loops will be constructed on this busy single track  line where there is heavy freight traffic to the ferries to Poland. The passenger station in Trelleborg will be restored for passenger traffic too. Ystad services will continue to use the freight line (the Continental line) around Malmö in the meantime.

The DSB service, Intercity Bornholm, which runs from Copenhagen C to Ystad, connecting with fast ferries to the Danish island of Bornholm, will run to the Ystad line via the Citytunnel and the Continental line, through but without stopping at Malmö C, until the new connection is established.

Malmö city has decided to start a half-hourly ring line service in both directions using the Citytunnel and the Continental line. Besides this ring line, only freight services will use the Continental line in the future. The city will build a pair of new stations on the line and encourage residential development on the areas around the stations.

At a time when major infrastructure projects are viewed with suspicion by some financiers, the success of Citytuneln proves that they delivered on time and on budget - and more importantly still that the benefits of providing better transport can cross borders.

Image captions
Top: 
Train set "Birgit Nielsen" approaching Hyllie past the watertower. Hyllie is the site of a new town development and a large Park and Ride station (replacing Svågertorp which has that function today) for Swedes who are travelling to Copenhagen airport. It costs DKK 230 to take a car over the bridge and park at the airport.


Bottom:

Set nr 9 at Trianglen deep level station in the commercial and shopping heart of Malmö. This is expected to be the busiest station in the city.

Malmo Citytuneln on track

Malmo's long planned Citytuneln is on track to open on December 12 and Danish Rail News' correspondent was at a press event last weekend which confirmed final arrangements. A full report will follow later today, but in the meantime, here's a view taken on the approach to the tunnels at Holmla, east of Hyllie...

Electrification plans for Zealand?

If our friends at the Copenhagen Post are right... this from their website:

DSB plans to electrify Zealand rails

S-Trains could cover the entire island within the next decade
State-owned train operator DSB looks likely to expand its S-Train service out of Greater Copenhagen to cover all of Zealand within the decade, reports public broadcaster DR.
If the plan falls into place, DSB’s S-Trains would run to towns such as Kalundborg and Nykøbing on the western coast of Zealand, and the service would gather most of its passenger growth by serving the new destinations.
The plan calls for establishing a network of a new generation of electrically powered trains on the island of Zealand within the next decade. The network would provide shorter travel times and reduce congestion on the rails, which DSB hopes would attract more commuters.
It is expected that the opening of the new train service would take place at the same time as the opening of the Fehmarn bridge in 2018.

Cable thieves target Sønderborg

Copper prices of DKK40 per kg have encouraged thieves to steal overhead power cables at the recently reopened Sønderborg station - even though they are electrified at 25kV.

Although such cable theft is not unknown in other European countries it remains comparatively rare in Denmark. Banedanmark believes the stolen cable may be being sold abroad and is appealing for witnesses.

The full press statement (in Danish) is here.

DSB helps Eritrean Railways

DSB is donating two containers full of machinery and tools to Eritrean Railways as part of the 'Hjælp til Eritreas jernbane' [Help Eritrain Railways] project started by Rene Strandbygaard and Copenhagen Film Company earlier this year. A delegation of management from the African railway toured depots at Copenhagen and Aarhus before the handover.

The aim of the campaign is to help develop Eritrea's railways and to make a positive contribution to the country's economy. Shipping company Maersk is supporting the project and has donated two containers as well as supplying transport from Aarhus to the Eritrean capital Asmara. The containers will go to Africa via London and are due to arrive in November.

DSB Executive Vice President Lone Lindsby said [this is an English translation]: "Denmark has a long history of helping countries that need it. This project is located very nicely in keeping with that tradition. DSB repair shops  had a quantity of redundant machinery and tools are it is natural for us to donate it. The machines and tools are fully functional and can now have a second life in Africa.

DSB set for privatisation?

This from the Copenhagen Post..

Funds raised from sale to be used for electric trains in Jutland

The government is in talks to privatise the public transport unit DSB, according to Berlingske Tidende newspaper.

According to the report, the transport firm will be privatised as of 2022, and the government intends to use 5-10 billion kroner of the proceeds to introduce electric trains to mid Jutland, where they currently use diesel trains for main line services.

This is not the first time the government has tried to privatise DSB, but it believes it will have more luck this time, given its intention to spend the proceeds on the country’s rail infrastructure. It stressed that the private rail operators would have to live up to a number of strict criteria, including good punctuality, and that it would make its decisions according to the competition principle, awarding tenders to those that promise the best service at the cheapest price.

First Group boss to retire

The Chief Executive of UK bus and rail operator First Group - which operates DSB First Sweden  in partnership with DSB - is to retire. Sir Moir Lockhead will be replaced by Tim O'Toole, the American railroad manager who took charge of London Underground and who joined First Group as Deputy Chief Executive in June. 2N47MXNSJ8XY

Designers aim to dress DSB staff

Designers Peter Jensen, Pernille Schwarz, Christian Westphal, Noir Illuminarti II, Goodmorning Technology & Sidsel Kjøller Damkj and Kontrapunkt are competing to create a new look for DSB's customer facing staff which will be introduced from next year.

The deadline for entries is Spring 2011 and the aim, according to DSB, is to reflect that it is a "service minded and green business."

Is DSB planning a different new look to go with its uniforms? It would seem odd if it didn't at least refresh its current branding...

The original press release (in Danish) is here.

Oops! DSB's mobile phone service is closed after just ONE day

DSB's brand new mobile phone service, DSB Talk, has been closed just a day after its launch following legal concerns that state-owned companies are barred from operating telecommunications companies.

The newspaper Politiken reported that the Transport Ministry ordered DSB to close DSB Talk, but the Managing Director of its parent company, DSB Mobil, claims the venture is legal and that it was given permission to start operations.

A more significant - if underreported - development which will affect many more DSB passengers than the closure of DSB Talk, however, is that a new passenger Ombudsman will be appointed to ensure DSB meets it's customer service obligations.

Expect to hear much more on these stories over the coming weeks.

Danish Rail News on twitter

You can now follow Danish Rail News on Twitter.... search for danishrailnews for the English Language version, or jernbanenyheder for the Danish one.

DSB phones home

Regular rail passengers are being targeted with the launch of a new mobile telephony service called DSB talk, with a range of incentives offered to encourage more rail use. The network is being provided by Telia, while Korean giant Samsung is supplying the smartphones initially on offer.


DSB says it is offering a range of “competitive” contracts, as well as fee free SMS tickets, free use of SDB ticket and journey information services and other incentives aimed at increasing subscribers’ use of public transport.

Customers can join DSB Talk on trains, at Kort & Godt shops and online at www.dsb.dk/dsbtalk.

Bidders line up for Europe's biggest signalling contract...

The bidders for the resignalling of Denmark's network with European Rail Traffic Management System Level 2 - which include Invensys Rail - are busily working on their bids for submission by the end of November.


The contract is divided into 2 sub-contracts one east of the Great Belt and the other west of the Great Belt, is worth up to DKK 6 billion and covers 2,200km of mainline railway. A single company will not be allowed to win both contracts but the winners will get an option on the other contract in the case of one company not being able to live up to the contract's conditions.

The first two trial lines - Roskilde – Køge – Næstved and Lanngå – Frederikshavn in the north of Jutland are expected to be commissioned in 2016 and the entire renewal is due to be completed in 2021.

Roskilde line set for new role

Aspirations to diminish the role of the Roskilde – Køge – Næstved secondary line have been axed due the key role the southern section from Køge to Næstved will play in the planned new Copenhagen – Køge – Ringsted line.


This single track line will be very useful as a diversionary route for traffic towards the planned Femern link and therefore may be a candidate for electrification. There are also plans to run half hourly regional service between Næstved and Copenhagen using the new line between Køge and Copenhagen.

It is still planned to issue tenders for operation of the Fredericia – Odense – Svendborg regional service.

Some rolling stock news...

The first IC2 train set has run under its own power at the AnsaldoBreda factory in Pistoia, Italy. The IC2s are two coach equivalents of the IC4s and are intended for use on secondary lines in Jutand and on Funen, but can run coupled to the IC4 trains on main line Intercity services. This feature will be used for adjusting Intercity capacity to demand as well as for running direct services from outlying areas to main cities should demand warrant it.


Elsewhere, the last Bn coach has finally been taken out of daily traffic on regional service out of Copenhagen and replaced by the leased double-deckers from Bombardier. These trains are hauled/propelled by the aging class ME diesels, which are going through a minor renewal programme to reduce emissions and improve reliability. When the new IC4s take over sufficient Intercity duties, these regional services will in turn be taken over by refurbished IC3 (Class MF) train sets and most of the diesel locomotives will be phased out.

Jutland track doubling planned

Plans to double the remaining two sections of the main line in south Jutland to the German border are being brought forward as the line is fast reaching maximum capacity - mainly due to rising freight traffic to and from Sweden. This increase in capacity is necessary in spite of the planned diversion of freight to the Femern link from 2018.


Plans to increase capacity and regularity by building a “sluce siding” at Copenhagen Airport to eliminate conflicting movements between freight and passenger trains are also being brought forward.

Direct Copenhagen-Germany trains for December

Direct two-hourly inter-city trains between Copenhagen and Flensburg (Germany) will start at the December timetable change using the seven IC3 (Class MF) trains which can run in both Denmark and Germany.


For those who follow rolling stock movements, these trains previously ran on the Copenhagen – Puttgarden - Hamburg route until they were replaced by the class BR 605s leased from DB.

Apologies for the intermission...

... a family wedding has kept us away from the keyboard for a few days. Normal service resumes now.

Danes leave their cars at home

A fall in automobile usage of 2.3% the first six months of the year is being credited to drivers switching to rail travel, according to DSB, which recorded an extra 2.4 million - 3% - journeys in the same period.

A combination of better marketing, improved train performance, greater awareness of rail's environmental credentials have all played their part in the growth, as has the recession, which has seen more people leave their cars at home when public transport is cheaper.

DSB reports good interim results

DSB carried 3% more passengers in the first half of 2010 compared with the same period last year, and this was allied with improved operational performance which saw delays to long distance trains fall by 3.5%.

The increase in passenger numbers is credited to better punctuality combined with new marketing initiatives and a revised fares system. There has been a similar percentage increase in passenger numbers in Sweden of 3%, and recent German acquisition VIAS is also now contributing.

Pre-tax profits were in line with expectations, totalling DKr 183 million compared with DKK 185 million in 2009. This slight fall is blamed on extra infrastructure maintenance caused by the severe winter, and extensive refurbishment of parts of the S-Bane network. Full year pre-tax profits are expected to be around DKK 450 million.

IC4s filter into service

Just a very brief update on the IC4 trains...

18 IC4 train sets are now in daily service, running as single sets on regional services or in a new non-stop service between Copenhagen and Århus. IC4 trains running in pairs are due to receive operating approval imminently, and triple sets are now being tested in Århus.

Sønderborg reopening marked with massive ticket offer

The reopening of the Sønderborg/Tinglev to Flenborg line following a five-month closure for major renewals is being marked with discounted tickets to win passengers back to the railway.

DSB is offering more than 6,000 Orange Tickets per week until September 26 at a cost of DKK 79 for travel between Sønderborg Gråsten, Kliplev, Tinglev and Copenhagen Central stations. For local passengers, a DSB SMS based ticket will offer unlimited travel after 10:00 between Sønderborg and Rødekro and between Sønderborg and Flensburg via Tinglev for DKK 49.

Also reopened is the Svanemøllen - Lyngby section of the S bane line to Hillerød. The remainder of the line reopens at the end of September.

DSB denies Øresund claims

DSB says reports claiming DSBFirst Sweden, which operates the Øresund crossing, is making huge losses are incorrect. It says the loss of SKr 16 million was due to planned - and anticipated - start-up costs in the first year of operation.



DSBFirst Sweden has a seven year concession which started in January 2009. Under Danish rules, DSB's overseas operations must make a profit margin of 5%, though this applies to the whole operation rather than a specific part of it.

DSB expands Nonstop services from Copenhagen to Aarhus

DSB introduced an additional pair of Nonstop services between Copenhagen and Aarhus this week aimed at making rail more attractive to business travellers.

The new 05:53 departure from Aarhus - Denmark's second city - arrives in Copenhagen at 08:42, and a corresponding additional return at 17:20 makes it feasible to conduct a whole day's business in the capital.

Journey times are 2 hours 40 mins, and with onboard internet access and catering facilities business passengers can make substantial productivity gains compared with driving.

The full press release (in Danish) is here.

Bids submitted for S-banen resignalling

Invensys Rail has submitted its bid for the massive S-banen resignalling project. The company was unable to reveal further details of it's bid, which is being evaluated against competing offers from four other groups, but the company has a growing portfolio of similar projects under way around the world, including Singapore, Sao Paulo, Madrid and London.

Banedanmark expects to announce the winner of the contract in the second quarter of 2011.

Major infrastructure work completes on time

Suburban trains between Svanemollen and Lyngby, and between Ryoarken, Hellerup and Klampenborg began running this week following major engineering work, though signalling problems this morning at Hellerup might have taken some of the gloss of the successful completion.

DSB's online growth continues

DSB's online ticketing service continues to prove popular, with a new survey placing www.dsb.dk as the most popular online retail site in the country - ahead of global giants such as Amazon and ITunes.

The 18-34 year old segment is said to be the fastest growing, and DSB is aggressively targeting the market with print at home tickets and other innovations. Online ticket sales account for more than half of DSB's customer base, and around DKr 50 million in revenue every month.

Nørreport revival planned

Planning work has started on a major upgrade of Denmark's busiest station. Nørreport, the sub-surface station in the centre of Copenhagen (and a busy interchange with the Metro and buses), has long needed attention caused by the deterioration of the 100-year-old tunnel roof, and finally the city authorities are taking the opportunity to completely replan the area.

The station today entrance is currently situated in the middle of a busy road and the plan is to reroute the road to the north of the station creating a large pedestrian area between the station and the mediaeval town. New ticket offices and bicycle parking facilities will be built when the work on the renewal of the station roof is complete.

The entire project is due to be completed in 2014.