Fabian Rod, Tram | Fabian Stang believes that the tram should be scrapped:

On Monday, Oslo’s first new tram rumbled into Sporveien’s carriage hall in Grefsen.

– I’ve been waiting for this day for a long time. It’s very good, a brilliantly satisfied transport and environmental agency in Oslo, Lan Marie Berg (ODM), told Nettavisen.

But not everyone is equally positive about the capital’s traditional blue tram. The former mayor of Oslo, Fabian Stang (H), believes that the tram should have been scrapped.

– It’s a bit old-fashioned with the trams in the city, Stang says when asked by Nettavisen about the 87 new trams that will be launched on the streets of Oslo over the next four years.

Stang was mayor of Oslo from 2007 to 2015, before the red-green city council took office.

Also read: Oslo City Council invests four billion in new trams: – Many are frustrated

– People would be surprised

Before last year’s election campaign, Stang thought the Conservatives in Oslo had to go to the polls to close the tram. He pointed out that the tram was too expensive, but it didn’t come to his own party.

– You can’t win every game, but when you’ve been in a position where you know the back numbers, I think it’s correct to say no, say now.

As mayor, he saw how much money goes to the streetcar. Not only the high cost of buying new trams, but also the cost of rail and other infrastructure.

– Everyone loves the tram, it’s no secret. But if people knew how much money they had to put on the table if they had to pay for each tram ride in relation to, say, an electric bus, I think they would be surprised, says Stang.

He says that in his time as mayor, it would be worth paying ten crowns to cover the costs of a bus trip. Whereas for a tram trip you had to pay 60 crowns.

– The discussion can last 40 years.

The 87 new trams bought by the municipality of Oslo are also priced very high – up to NOK 4.2 billion. It is still only part of the total cost.

– When we talk about what the tram costs, we often talk about what it costs to buy the tram. But now we’ve probably dug almost the entire city to accommodate the new tram, and there are many businesses struggling every time the tram rails are rebuilt. We’re talking big sums, Stang says.

See photos and video: Here is the new Oslo tram

– So the new trams shouldn’t have been bought?

– I think I was involved in commissioning them, so I can’t say that, but at the next crossroads we should think it through, he says, adding:

– It was more to start the discussion. But I think the discussion may take 40 years, so it’s okay to start, he replies, referring to the estimated service life of trams.

He thinks that Oslo should invest in more subways, in addition to electric buses.

– The metro is absolutely ideal because it has its own track, but trams are a bit cumbersome in the city center. When there is snow and obstacles, you do not pass, and when a tram derails, the entire network stops, he explains.

– Love triumphs over most things

He realizes that the 145-year history of the blue tram is something many people have strong feelings for.

– But next time we make a change, I think you should stay on the track to Ljabru and Jar where the tram follows its own track. Rail traffic on its own track is very good, but trams on city streets are very expensive, Stang says.

He still wants the best for the new trams, which is too late to stop.

– Now we have to cross our fingers for this to be successful, and hope that they can withstand the frosts and other strange things that we have in Norway. The excavation in the streets is beginning to come to an end, and the streetcars are coming, so we can make the best of it, he says.

– Have you received many reactions to your opinions?

– I think most people agree with me, but still ends up saying that we have to continue with the tram. Love for the tram trumps most things, Stang says, and reveals that he himself will not boycott the new trams.

– I like to travel by tram, I think it is a nice way to travel, he says happily.

See video of the new tram:

– Pretty new subway tunnel

The politics of the FRP city council in Oslo, Aina Stenersen, is one of those who support Stang.

– We believe that you should invest in buses and metro than in new tram and tram lines, as it is more profitable, Stenersen tells Nettavisen.

He points out that the Progress Party voted against the purchase of new trams in the town hall.

– Buying trams for 4.2 billion kronor is one thing, but it is only one of the things that will happen. There will also be improvements and roads will be excavated, so the total amount will be close to 8 billion crowns, he says.

Stenersen believes the money should have been spent on a long-awaited new inner-city tunnel for the subway below Oslo.

– The amount that will be spent on trams is half of what a new tunnel will cost in the city center. So we think this is a great use of money, he says.

– But is the tram part of the urban landscape and many people like it too?

– We recorded that there are many who support the tram in Oslo, but if they had the actual calculation of 8 billion crowns against investing in a subway tunnel so that we could get five minutes of departures, I think more would be positive. to that, says Stenersen.

He also points out that the tram does not run in Oslo, as for example in Grorud.

– The tram is mainly found in the downtown areas and benefits those who are in the city center, and we want a public transport service for all of Oslo, he says.

Read also: The first images: They will change the urban landscape «forever»

– Motorists receive the invoice

The FRP politician also believes that it is wrong that motorists receive much of the bill, as the new trams are financed through the Oslo package3 and tolls.

– Those who will end the bill here are the motorists, and there is a group against which the City Council is fighting hard. So this is not something to rejoice over, says Stenersen.

One who, on the other hand, almost applauded on Monday, was Environment and Transport Agency councilor Lan Marie Berg (ODM), when Oslo’s first new tram was shown to city residents.

Watch a video interview with Berg here:

However, Stenersen reacts to the council taking credit for the project.

– We register that the city council tries to take credit for the project, but in fact it is KrF, Venstre and Høyre who finished signing the purchase contract when they were in the city hall, he says.