Europabanan

Europabanan
Planned route
Götalandsbanan to Linköping Jönköpingsbanan to Falköping Jönköping Central Station Jönköpingsbanan to Nässjö Jönköping (new station) Götalandsbanan to Borås Vaggerydsbanan Taberg Halmstadsbanan to Nässjö Vaggeryd Halmstadsbanan Coast-to-Coast Line to Borås Värnamo Coast-to-Coast Line to Växjö Halmstadsbanan to Halmstad Skåne–Småland Line Markarydsbanan Hässleholm Central Station West Coast Line to Ängelholm Lund Central Station Malmö Central Station Øresund Bridge over Øresund Sweden Denmark Drogden Tunnel under Øresund Copenhagen Central Station to Fyn, Jylland & Hamburg

The Europabanan (the Europe line) was a prominent concept within Sweden's ambitious plans for a new generation of high-speed railways, primarily envisioned to connect the central region of Jönköping with Scania in the south. Originally proposed to support speeds of up to 320 km/h, this line aimed to significantly enhance passenger transport efficiency and reduce travel times across southern Sweden [1]. Its design also stipulated a crucial connection point in Jönköping to the then-planned Götalandsbanan, which was conceived as a high-speed link between Sweden's two largest cities, Stockholm and Gothenburg [2].

Previous proposals

There is also a proposal, but no real plan, to build a railway between Helsingborg and Copenhagen, including the HH Tunnel under the Öresund. The rail track on the current Öresund bridge is congested.

Europabanan will, if built, be used for passenger trains going between Copenhagen-Stockholm, Malmö-Stockholm, Helsingborg-Stockholm, Helsingborg-Jönköping and more connections. The travel time Malmö-Stockholm is expected to be around 3 hours compared to 4.5 hours today. The travel time Helsingborg-Jönköping would be cut by 2 hours compared to today. The disadvantage with the project is the big cost.

Feasibility study

There is a feasibility study ordered by the government supporting the idea about the Europabanan. The study did not include the Öresund tunnel. There is no further planning done. This is in contrast to Götalandsbanan which has a detailed plan along half its stretch and (in 2010) one being made for the rest of that railway. There is no decision to build any part of these railways.

The expected cost is at least 40 billion SEK for Europabanan, not counting the connection to Denmark, an amount that caused political hesitation.

Negotiations

In February 2016 negotiations were started with municipalities for financing a high-speed rail between Stockholm and Malmö, with stations in Jönköping, Värnamo, Hässleholm and Lund.

External links

• Europakorridoren, a lobbyist organisation owned by concerned cities
• Sverigeförhandlingen, a negotiation organisation set up by the Swedish government