Welcome to today's thread - 2025 #CrossBorderRail Finale Day 13 - 22 June - Oslo - Grums - Öxnered - Herrljunga - Falköping - Nässjö, onto night train
Today's new borders:
None
Borders map, inc. borders re-crossed:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-all-the-borders_935041#11/55.5584/12.7750
Today's trains on the routes map:
https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#7/56.867/11.980
Here's today's #CrossBorderRail music track
Hugo Alfven: Swedish Rhapsody No.1 "Midsommarvaka"
Frédéric Zosso
Thanks @Jonas_Bostrom for this one - the right time of year!
Here's this morning's intro video, explaining what I am trying to do today!
Over there a recovery truck is picking up a FlixBus, presumably the one that was meant to operate my service to Grums…
We’re delayed 30 mins.
Now a further 30 mins delay announced
If I miss the train in Grums... my only option is to stay longer on the Flixbus, as far as Örebro
Might be an interesting argument: "Your bus was late, so I missed my train, so now you need to let me stay on it longer!" 🤔
It's almost like a real live case of the problems of Multimodal Digital Mobility Services the Commission is trying to legislate about!
#CrossBorderRail Finale Bus 12 of 22
Flixbus
08:00 Oslo S - Grums 10:36
Bus type: Volvo 9700, 2 axles
⛽️
🚲: ❓ (not officially, but there would be space in the hold)
🦽: ⛔️
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 (hold is huge)
🧽: 🙂
But rather than getting us going a bit earlier, the driver is now smoking a cigarette
Priorities 🤷♂️
I simply do not see why anyone *by choice* would favour a bus over a train
Other than Lux Express in the Baltics (that strikes me as a genuinely good company) I’d very happily give all the others a miss
Edit: as people are going “but buses are cheaper!” - I get why then you’d take a bus! But if all else were equal?
I’m generally very resistant to vehicles having a physical impact on me
But once in a while the rocking of a bus - at some specific rhythm I suppose - just makes me keep on falling asleep
This is one such bus
I hope this doesn’t happen this way to the driver!
EL 15 locomotives parked up here in Grums. Built for Kiruna - Narvik iron ore trains, the remaining 5 now operate for Grenland Rail in Sweden
The design however… was much further developed in Romania by Electroputere (hundreds of similar locomotives still run there)
#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 49 of 155
R 363
12:40 Grums - Öxnered 13:58
SJ
Train type: Bombardier Regina EMU, 3 carriages
⚡️ (15kV ac)
🚲: ⛔️
🦽: ✅ (step free then lift up on board)
🛜: ✅
🍽️: ✅
🧳: 🙂
🧽: 🙂
🎫 Interrail: 🙂 (accepted 2nd class, compulsory reservation 1st class)
R 363
12:40 Grums - Öxnered 13:58
Distance: 128.2km
Average speed: 99km/h
4 stops:
Säffle
Åmål
Mellerud
Öxnered
This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#9/58.8173/12.4036
The final big #CrossBorderRail tour - to the eastern borders of the EU, and missing intra-EU borders. In June-July 2025. Each day of the project is a Layer in the map - these should be displayed by default, or if not click the three layered diamonds icon "Open browser" to the left side of the map. The icons are all for borders, roughly coloured to differentiate the borders. A cross through a track means NO TRAINS CAN RUN. A cross through trains but not track means TRAINS CAN RUN BUT NO PASSENGER TRAINS. And TRAIN AND TRACK (no crosses) means there is a passenger service.
Lots of passengers wearing dark glasses on this train 😎
Not sure if it’s because they’re hung over from Midsommar or think they’re too cool
Probably a bit of both!
Åmål
Where they mostly didn’t film Fucking Åmål https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Show_Me_Love_(film)?wprov=sfti1
But it is 314km from Falun, as per the station building
SJ’s hostility to cyclists is quite something
This is a modern EMU adapted for all sorts of passengers - including those with large luggage, those with pets, and those in wheelchairs
But there’s no bicycle space. You could even fit bikes where these bags are currently placed
#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 50 of 155
R 13835
15:50 Öxnered - Herrljunga 16:43
(Boarded at Vänersborg)
SJ Västtågen
Train type: ABB X 14 EMU, 2 carriages
⚡️ (15kV ac)
🚲: ✅ (a Swedish train with bike places! 🎉)
🦽: ✅ (ramp on board)
🛜: ⛔️
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 (lots of multi use spaces)
🧽: 🙂
🎫 Interrail: 🙂 (accepted)
R 13835
15:50 Öxnered - Herrljunga 16:43
Distance: 68.6km
Average speed: 78km/h
6 stops:
Vänersborg Central
Vargön
Grästorp
Vara
Vedum
Herrljunga
This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#11/58.2291/12.6514
The final big #CrossBorderRail tour - to the eastern borders of the EU, and missing intra-EU borders. In June-July 2025. Each day of the project is a Layer in the map - these should be displayed by default, or if not click the three layered diamonds icon "Open browser" to the left side of the map. The icons are all for borders, roughly coloured to differentiate the borders. A cross through a track means NO TRAINS CAN RUN. A cross through trains but not track means TRAINS CAN RUN BUT NO PASSENGER TRAINS. And TRAIN AND TRACK (no crosses) means there is a passenger service.
#CrossBorderRail Finale Train 51 of 155
R 184
16:53 Herrljunga - Falköping Central 17:08
SJ
Train type: Alstom X 40 EMU, 2x 3 double deck carriages
⚡️ (15kV ac)
🚲: ⛔️
🦽: ✅ (step free into lower level)
🛜: ✅
🍽️: ⛔️
🧳: 🙂 (for a double deck design good)
🧽: 😐 (bit grimy and worn)
🎫 Interrail: 🙂 (accepted)
R 184
16:53 Herrljunga - Falköping Central 17:08
Distance: 33.8km
Average speed: 135km/h
1 stops:
Falköping Central
This train, mapped: https://umap.openstreetmap.fr/en/map/crossborderrail-2025-finale_1163738#12/58.1275/13.2866
The final big #CrossBorderRail tour - to the eastern borders of the EU, and missing intra-EU borders. In June-July 2025. Each day of the project is a Layer in the map - these should be displayed by default, or if not click the three layered diamonds icon "Open browser" to the left side of the map. The icons are all for borders, roughly coloured to differentiate the borders. A cross through a track means NO TRAINS CAN RUN. A cross through trains but not track means TRAINS CAN RUN BUT NO PASSENGER TRAINS. And TRAIN AND TRACK (no crosses) means there is a passenger service.
@jon where there is a viable choice between the two modes, done people will still prioritise cost over comfort (and arguably environmental impact) even if they could afford the higher fare. It gets into interesting philosophical grounds of what "need" is at that point!
If fare and journey time are also the same, I really don't get why people would choose bus over train but I bet some still would
@mgleadow @jon I think this would be a niche choice even here in the UK. In my experience if the bus versus train discussions come up, it tends to be cost, end-to-end journey time, and crowding and reliability that affect the choice.
How close you get to your destination and how frequently services run are a big part of this.
@mgleadow @jon I am quite surprised to discover that there are some people who would prefer bus over train. Before I thought that except for people in a dire strait, or when it takes significantly longer (at least 2h more I'd had said), nobody would choose bus over train.
I think I never consider bus as an option. Actually even when the app proposes a faster bus transfer, I untick the bus option to get the train only course if at all possible.
@tomtom @jon this is interesting both in reminding us to remove our own views from biasing considering the position of items, and in reminding the rail industry of the importance of doing the above when considering passengers!
And as replies have shown, it's not just about cost, it's about convenience and certainty. Guaranteed seat, clean facilities important
@jon I can see one reason (besides price which I assume you're excluding!): buses sometimes can go to the town centre where rail stations are outside a city, sometimes stopping at multiple points.
This would be an advantage only for very short journeys, otherwise the likely delays far outweigh the benefits.
@jon There's also obv some routes where it would be impractical to lay rails (because topography or because environmental/cultural preservation) But again, I assume you're comparing trains vs buses where routes exist for both, which is fair enough!
(I guess my previous point was a special case of this; there's often a logistical reason that you can't build a large station in the centre of a town of mediaeval provenance)
@interrailinfosvenska @jon I bet more people travel with trains, though, on routes with both flixbus and long distance trains? Even though flixbus has an impressive network, the capacity of coaches is still tiny
What doesn’t seem to work is luxury coaches against trains. The comfort gap is still too wide, and people not happy with flixbus choose trains instead of a comfortable bus. So a bus can only compete with high efficiency (low pay for driver, cramped seats)
@tml @jon 4 abreast is still too narrow and any amount of legroom cannot change that. I have found the 3 abreast section okay, though. It’s roughly in the same class as long distance trains.
I also believe lux express would not have succeeded, if the Estonian train system wouldn’t have been neglected during the 90s.
@jon you're going to say this doesn't count as "by choice" but I'd ironically congratulate Via Rail in Canada on trying to make their trains as less favourable as possible on cost, luggage allowance (it's airline rules) and "check in" (you have to line up at a gate before you're allowed to go onto the platform.
In addition to their capacity problems, speed problems, etc.
Jon Worth
Martin Hoffmann
Sebastian Wilken
Marc-Oliver Schaake
Jannik
Anna
Jonas Boström
Shaun McDonald
Donald R Noble
Wrzlbrnft
Julien Goodwin
Martin Gleadow
Will Deakin
Tom Tom
Adam
Trainfo.eu
Krist van Besien
Tor Lillqvist
Rich
Andreas Lindholm
acb
TinheadNed