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Transport in Stockholm

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Metro trains at Slussen

Transport in Stockholm consists of an extensive and well-developed transport network, integrating both public and private services across the city and surrounding county. Stockholm regularly ranks as having one of the best public transport systems in the world.[1][2][3]

Public transport is managed primarily by Storstockholms Lokaltrafik (SL), which is owned by Region Stockholm.[4] SL oversees a wide range of services, including buses, the metro, commuter rail, light rail, local rail, and commuter ferries. SL's network uses a unified ticketing system, while operation and maintenance of SL's services are managed by various contracted companies.

In addition to SL, several other public and private operators provide regional and inter-city rail connections, long-distance buses, and Waxholmsbolaget archipelago boat services.

Airport transport services in Stockholm are provided by both public and private operators. SL offers commuter rail connections to Arlanda Airport and tram services to Bromma Airport, along with some local bus routes serving Arlanda. Private operators include Flygbussarna, which runs airport bus services, and the Arlanda Express, providing a high-speed train link to Arlanda Airport.

Buses

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A red city bus to Ropsten in the centre of Stockholm.

There are over 500 bus lines in Stockholm County. [5] There are three different kinds of bus lines that differ from regular bus lines.

  • Inner-city blue bus lines
  • Suburban blue bus lines
  • Service bus lines

The blue buses are in the inner city variant trunk lines traversing large parts of the Stockholm inner city, and in the suburban variant acting as important feeder lines between the suburbs and public transport hubs in central Stockholm, or providing crossway connections between suburbs. These are called blue bus lines because the buses that operate on them are painted blue, in contrast to the red color of the regular buses.[6] The service bus lines are especially adapted for elderly people, and are found in certain residential areas. Along some parts of these lines instead of regular bus stops there are areas where one can halt the bus just by waving at them. In addition to this, there are also night busses, which replace the regular bus routes during the night, during which they do not run. These lines always have some variation of X9X as their number, such as 197, 91, and 291.

Buses in Stockholm have a punctuality of around 92 percent. [5]

Blue bus lines

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Line Route
1 Frihamnen – HötorgetFridhemsplanStora Essingen
2 NorrtullOdenplanSlussenSofia
3 SödersjukhusetSlussenFridhemsplanKarolinska Hospital
4 GullmarsplanFridhemsplanEast Station – Radiohuset
6 RopstenEast StationOdenplanKarolinska Institute
172 NorsborgHuddingeHögdalenSkarpnäck
173 SkärholmenÄlvsjöBandhagenSkarpnäck
176 Mörby station – SolnaEkerö centre – Stenhamra
177 Mörby station – Solna – Tappström – Skärvik
178 Mörby station – Helenelund station – KistaJakobsberg station
179 Sollentuna station – KistaSpånga station – Vällingby
471 SlussenNackaOrminge centre – West Orminge
474 SlussenGustavsberg centre – Ålstäket – Hemmesta
670 East StationDanderyds sjukhusVaxholm
676 East StationDanderyds sjukhusNorrtälje
677 Norrtälje - Rimbo - Knivsta - Uppsala
873 GullmarsplanTyresö centre – Nyfors
875 GullmarsplanTyresö centreTyresö church

Metro

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Rådhuset metro station on the Stockholm Metro

The Stockholm Metro consists of three groups of lines (blue, red, green), which are each referred to as a singular line.

Line Route Travel
time[7]
Length Stations
10 Kungsträdgården – Hjulsta 23 min 15.1 km 14
11 Kungsträdgården – Akalla 22 min 15.6 km 12
13 Norsborg – Ropsten 44 min 26.6 km 25
14 Fruängen – Mörby centrum 33 min 19.5 km 19
17 Skarpnäck – Åkeshov 43 min 19.6 km 24
18 Farsta strand – Alvik 37 min 18.4 km 23
19 Hagsätra – Hässelby strand 55 min 28.6 km 35
Entire metro network 108 km 100

The Stockholm metro has been called 'the world's longest art gallery',[8] with most of the network's 100 stations decorated with sculptures, mosaics, paintings, installations, engravings and reliefs.

Commuter rail

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Stockholm city commuter train station

The Pendeltåg commuter train system connects central Stockholm with the wider county, operating on two main branches with six route lines:

Line Route Length Stations
40 Uppsala C – Arlanda C– Stockholm City – Södertälje centrum 25
41 Märsta – Stockholm City – Södertälje centrum 24
42 Märsta – Stockholm City – Nynäshamn 26
43 Bålsta – Stockholm City – Nynäshamn 28
44 Kallhäll – Stockholm City – Tumba 21
48 Södertälje centrum – Gnesta 6

Light rail

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Lidingöbanan

There are four light rail systems in Stockholm.

  • Lidingöbanan: A light rail line linking the island of Lidingö to the mainland.
  • Tvärbanan: A semi-circular orbital route passing west of the city using various bridges, tunnels and on-road sections.
  • Nockebybanan: A feeder light rail line linking western suburbs to the Stockholm metro.
  • Spårväg City: A tram line connecting the city centre with Djurgården.

Two of them, Nockebybanan and Tvärbanan are connected and share depot and rolling stock. The vehicles used on these lines are localised versions of the Bombardier Flexity Swift and CAF Urbos.[9]

There is one heritage tram line operational, Djurgården line.[10] The infrastructure is part of Spårväg City owned by SL, but the cars are owned and operated by the Swedish Tramway Society. All SL fares are valid.[11]

Name Line Route Length Stops
Spårväg City 7 Sergels TorgWaldemarsudde 3.2 km 12
Djurgårdslinjen 7N NorrmalmstorgWaldemarsudde/Bellmansro 2.9 km 10
Nockebybanan 12 NockebyAlvik 5.7 km 10
Lidingöbanan 21 RopstenGåshaga brygga 9.2 km 14
Tvärbanan 30 SicklaSolna Station 18.2 km 26
Tvärbanan 31 Alviks StrandBromma Flygplats 6

Local rail

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Roslagsbanan

There are two further local systems (also labelled in English material as "light rail" by SL[12]) the Roslagsbanan, a narrow gauge rail system, and the Saltsjöbanan with standard gauge rail. Neither are connected to the main railway network. The entire Saltsjöbanan is currently replaced by buses due to construction work on the line, with it being slated to open again from 2025, although not the full line to Slussen until a few years later. [13] Roslagsbanan is planned to be extended directly to T-Centralen via a new tunn

Name Lines Route Length Stations
Saltsjöbanan 25, 26 SlussenSaltsjöbaden; IgelbodaSolsidan 18.5 km 18
Roslagsbanan 27, 28, 29 Stockholm East StationNäsbypark/Österskär/Kårsta 65.0 km 39

Archipelago boats

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The majority of transport across the islands of archipelago is operated by Waxholmsbolaget. Boats depart from Strömkajen, Vaxholm, Stavsnäs, Årsta brygga, and Nynäshamn.[14]

Commuter ferries

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Ferryboat Hättan on Route 80
Ferryboat Hättan on Route 80 (Sjövägen)

As of November 2021 there are four commuter ferry (pendelbåt) lines in Stockholm, administered by SL. Some are run by Waxholmsbolaget under SL supervision.[15]

Line Route
80 NybroplanRopsten - Frösvik
82 SlussenAllmänna gränd
83 StrömkajenVaxholm - Rindö Grenadjärbryggan
83X StrömkajenVaxholm - Rindö Grenadjärbryggan
89 Klara MällarstrandTappström (Ekerö)
84 StrömkajenÅlstäket (Gustavsberg)

Regional and intercity rail

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Mälartåg regional train

There are also regional and InterCity trains going on the mainlines between Stockholm and cities outside the county. These cities include Uppsala, Gävle, Eskilstuna, Linköping, Västerås. These train are run by Mälartåg and SJ with some being subject to public funding. Single tickets can be bought from each respective operator while period tickets including local public transport can be used on either operator.

Roads

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Norra länken (North link) motorway in Stockholm

Stockholm’s road network is shaped by its geographic location, spread across islands between Lake Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. Historically, waterways posed significant obstacles for land transport, with only a few key routes existing in the Middle Ages.[16] Over the centuries, Stockholm's roads evolved, starting with Göta landsväg, the only southern route until the 1670s, and expanding through major developments such as Klas Fleming’s 17th-century street regulations[17] and Albert Lindhagen’s urban planning in the late 19th century.[18] Today, Stockholm’s main traffic arteries include Essingeleden, Södertäljevägen, and other radial routes connecting the city out to surrounding areas.

Stockholm is at the junction of the European routes E4, E18 and E20. A C-shaped motorway ring road exists around the south, west and north of the City Centre. The northern section of the ring road, Norra Länken, opened for traffic in 2015 while a final subsea eastern section has been discussed at various points in the past, but was discontinued in 2018, and is no longer included in the national plan.[19]

A bypass motorway for traffic between Northern and Southern Sweden, Förbifart Stockholm, is being built. The many islands and waterways make extensions of the road system both complicated and expensive, and new motorways are often built as systems of tunnels and bridges.

Congestion charge

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A control point for the congestion charge leading up to Essingeleden

Stockholm has a congestion pricing system, the Stockholm congestion tax,[20] in use on a permanent basis since 1 August 2007,[21][22] after having had a seven-month trial period in the first half of 2006.[23] The City Centre is within the congestion tax zone. All the entrances and exits of this area have unmanned control points operating with automatic number plate recognition. All vehicles entering or exiting the congestion tax affected area, with a few exceptions, have to pay 10–20 SEK (1.09–2.18 EUR, 1.49–2.98 USD) depending on the time of day between 06:30 and 18:29. The maximum tax amount per vehicle per day is SEK 60 (EUR 6.53).[24] Payment is done by various means within 14 days after one has passed one of the control points; one cannot pay at the control points.[25]

After the trial period was over, consultative referendums were held in Stockholm Municipality and several other municipalities in Stockholm County. The then-reigning government (Persson Cabinet) stated that they would only take into consideration the results of the referendum in Stockholm Municipality. The opposition parties (Alliance for Sweden) stated that if they were to form a cabinet after the general election—which was held the same day as the congestion tax referendums—they would take into consideration the referendums held in several of the other municipalities in Stockholm County as well. The results of the referendums were that the Stockholm Municipality voted for the congestion tax, while the other municipalities voted against it. The opposition parties won the general election and a few days before they formed government (Reinfeldt Cabinet) they announced that the congestion tax would be reintroduced in Stockholm, but that the revenue would go entirely to road construction in and around Stockholm. During the trial period and according to the agenda of the previous government the revenue went entirely to public transport.

Airport transport

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Arlanda Express

Arlanda Airport

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Being the largest airport in Sweden, it is connected to Stockholm by several means. Arlanda Express provides an airport rail link service between the airport and Stockholm Central Station. It is by far the fastest connection, but also the most expensive. Other possibility is to take a commuter train (Pendeltåg) No. 40 that passes through the airport on its shuttling between Uppsala and Stockholm City Station, but a special surcharge is applied. This is because Arlanda Express has been built as a public–private partnership project, with the winner having a monopoly on rail transport to the airport. Other rail operators like SL are therefore obliged to pay fees to Arlanda Express. Flygbussarna provides shuttle bus connection from airport to cityterminalen.

Bromma Airport is connected via tram line 31 (Tvärbanan). Flygbussarna provides an airport bus service to and from all four airports associated with Stockholm: Stockholm-Arlanda Airport, Stockholm-Bromma Airport, Stockholm-Skavsta Airport, and Stockholm-Västerås Airport.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Walsh, Laura (2024-04-27). "10 Cities With the Best Public Transportation, From Medellín to Stockholm". Condé Nast Traveler. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
  2. ^ Cooper, William (2023-06-20). "Global Transport Index". William Russell. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
  3. ^ "Top 10 cities with the best public transport". World Economic Forum. Dec 21, 2022.
  4. ^ "Stockholm Transport - in English". Archived from the original on February 7, 2007.
  5. ^ a b "Fakta om SL och länet" (PDF). www.regionstockholm.se. Retrieved 15 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Blåbussarna". AB Storstockholms Lokaltrafik. Archived from the original on 2007-02-21. Retrieved 2007-04-21.
  7. ^ Stockholm metro timetables. Storstockholms Lokaltrafik. 2007. 10 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 11 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 13 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 14 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 17 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 18 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine 19 Archived 9 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "Stockholm Metro: The World's Longest Art Gallery". May 7, 2012.
  9. ^ "CAF wins Urbos tram contracts". Retrieved 2011-04-01.
  10. ^ "The Djurgården line no 7". Swedish Tramway Society. Retrieved 2007-05-18.
  11. ^ "The Djurgården line no 7N: Fares". Swedish Tramway Society. Retrieved 2011-07-21.
  12. ^ "Official Map" (PDF).
  13. ^ "Avstängning på Saltsjöbanan 2023 | SL".
  14. ^ "Waxholmsbolaget". Waxholmsbolaget.
  15. ^ "Åka pendelbåt". SL.
  16. ^ "Ny i Stockholm". nyistockholm.se. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
  17. ^ "Klas Fleming - Svenskt Biografiskt Lexikon". sok.riksarkivet.se. Retrieved 2024-10-09.
  18. ^ redaktion, Stockholmskällans (2023-01-05). "Lindhagenplanen och parker på bergen 1850–1900". Stockholmskällan (in Swedish). Retrieved 2024-10-09.
  19. ^ "Östlig förbindelse" [Eastern Connection].
  20. ^ "Congestion tax in Stockholm from 1 August". Swedish Road Administration. Archived from the original on 2 March 2007. Retrieved 2 August 2007.
  21. ^ "Trängselskatt i Stockholm". Swedish Road Administration. Archived from the original on 9 July 2007. Retrieved 1 August 2007.
  22. ^ "Odramatisk start för biltullarna". Dagens Nyheter. 1 August 2007. Archived from the original on 30 September 2007. Retrieved 1 August 2007.
  23. ^ "Stockholmsförsöket". Stockholmsförsöket. Archived from the original on 15 July 2007. Retrieved 18 July 2007.
  24. ^ "Tider och belopp". Swedish Road Administration. Archived from the original on 3 July 2007. Retrieved 1 August 2007.
  25. ^ "Betalning". Swedish Road Administration. Archived from the original on 29 June 2007. Retrieved 1 August 2007.
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