Linbanan Kristineberg-Boliden - Luftseilbahn Norsjö

93593 Norsjö, Sweden (Västerbottens län)

Norsjö aerial tramway

On the world’s longest ropeway you’ll be able to enjoy many things, most of them from above nature! The over 13 km long ropeway between Örträsk and Mensträsk in Norsjö municipality will take you over woodland, marshes, lakes, and the world of the animals in a Västerbotten in miniature. You will even be able to take a look at southern Lapland. Each cabin is able to carry 4 people, and at a speed of 11 km/hour it will take you 1,5 hours to ride the 13.163 m (3.000 m of which above lakes and streams). Our ropeway  is a part of the 96 km long ropeway between Kristineberg and Boliden.

The ropeway is one of the figurative golden nuggets in the mining region Gold of Europe – a tourist attraction and a part of our industrial history as well. Mining of the Gold of Europe in the literal sense of the world is still carried out in these parts of the country by Boliden Mineral AB.

The ropeway museum, Café Skrädhuset, the narrow-gauge railway for children, and the Crown forest Vildmarken are other activities and things worth seeing in connection with the ropeway.

From Wikipedia:
Kristineberg-Boliden ropeway

The shortage of fuel and rubber during World War II made road transport of ore increasingly expensive for Boliden AB. With a straight-line distance of around 90 kilometers, the copper mine in Kristinberg was farthest from its main facility in Boliden. In addition to the rationed imports, steel and even concrete were precious commodities at the time. So while a couple of railway solutions, including a narrow gauge railway, were evaluated the ropeway came out on top because of its favourable construction material requirements.

Planning started in 1941, the initial idea was run the ropeway straight between Boliden and Kristineberg, with supports made from arsenic-treated wood to keep construction costs at a minimum. To make the most of the investment, however, it was decided to run the line across a number of newly discovered ore bodies to allow loading onto the ropeway once exploration was commenced - intermediate stations were required around every 13 km in any case.

By April 1942, a workforce of 1500 men was deployed to pave support roads, clear forest (in a 40 m wide corridor to avoid damage from falling trees), cast and assemble supports and mechanical stations. 514 poles - with 16 standing in waterways - were raised, along with 10 driving- and loading stations as well as 25 intermediate tension stations. The tallest pillars at the crossing of the Skellefte river were 38 m tall with an internal staircase. Pole-to-pole span ranged between 11 and 429 meters.

The first ore gondola was sent across the 96 km line on 14 April 1943, 370 days after construction commenced and 4 ½ months ahead of schedule. During its 45 years of operation, the cableway was periodically evaluated for its competitiveness with road transport. Numerous optimizations, including lighter gondolas and full-on automation were enacted to maintain its lead.

Eventually in 1986 the circumstances had changed to the point where heavy trucks were more economical, and the ropeway was closed and demolished in the following years.

At the time of decommissioning a society was founded, Världens längsta linbaneförening ("World's longest ropeway society"), for the preservation of the cableway. Section IV, one of the eight parts of roughly 13 km, was preserved and converted to passenger transport.

While all mechanical installations for the rest of the system, as well as gondolas and cables were torn down, most of the support pillars were left standing along their path through the woods.

Världens längsta linbana till salu – ett smultronställe med utvecklingspotential!

Bosse Biström och Marie-Louise Eklund har under 28 års tid drivit ett av Västerbottens populäraste besöksmål. Nu är det dags för skiftbyte.

Tidens tand
Rekordbygget, som skulle transportera malm mellan Kristineberg och Boliden, stod klart den 14 april 1943 – bara ett år och fem dagar efter byggstart. Malmen transporterades längs linbanan fram till 1987, och två år senare, den 10 juli 1989 invigdes den 13,6 kilometer långa turistlinbana mellan Mensträsk och Örträsk i Norsjö kommun. Den kom med i Guinness rekordbok som Världens längsta passagerarlinbana för persontrafik. Idag, 76 år senare, har belastningen från malmtransporten, ålder, väder och vind påverkat anläggningen. Genom projektet `Ny framtid för världens längsta`, har en besiktning av stolparna kunnat utföras. Besiktningen visade att det kommer att krävas åtgärder för att banan återigen ska godkännas för persontrafik.

• Imprint
• Privacy
• Terms of Use
• Copyright
• FAQ

• About Radiomuseum.org
• Contact
• Press
• Logos
• send2friend