Denmark - General Information

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Country Name

Denmark (Danmark)

National Railway System

National Railway Operator

Danske Statsbaner (DSB).

Language

Danish

Currency

Danish Krone

UIC code

numeric 86; alpha DK

Timetable

Journey Planner

www.rejseplanen.dk. Note that this journey planner selects bus services if they provide the best journey. Click on "Advanced options" to bring up a screen enabling selection or deselection of various modes of transport.

Downloadable Timetable

Working (Staff) Timetable

The Tjenestekøreplaner (in Danish only) are divided into 3 sections - Øst, Vest and S-Tog.

Printed Timetable

The DSB Køreplan ceased publication in the autumn of 2015. Arriva Tog A/S ​​​still provides timetable leaflets for its services.

A timetable - Veterantog i Danmark - is issued for most of the seasonal tourist railways by Danske Veterantogsoperatøres Fællesrepræsentation (DVF) and Lokomotivklubben KLK in printed form from Danske Jernbane-Klub, Kalvebod Brygge 40, DK-1560 København V, or at Danske Veterantogs Fællesrepræsentation (only in Danish).

Engineering Information

Trafikinformation in Danish only, then select:

  • Dagens ændringer (Today's changes)
  • Oversigtskort over sporarbejder (Overview map of track work)

Bus Information

The Journey Planner (above) selects bus services if they provide the best journey.

Maps

Printed Maps

Web-based Maps

Ticketing

A single fare structure covers both DSB and private lines. National fares apply only when a journey covers at least two regions. Local fares apply wholly within a region; these are all zonal and also cover buses. Some regions also offer day tickets. InterRail and similar tickets are accepted on Lokaltog, Arriva Tog and Nordjyske Jernbaner services, but are not valid on Midtjyske Jernbaner. Penalty fares are charged if passengers are without a valid ticket on local lines in the København area.

Seat reservations are desirable on long-distance services. Reservations from intermediate stations are issued until shortly before the train calls, so apparently unreserved seats may be claimed during the course of the journey.

Infrastructure

Infrastructure Authority

Infrastructure is owned by BaneDanmark, a public authority separate from DSB.

Network Statement

Railway infrastructure owned by the Danish state is described in Banedanmark's Network Statements. This contains recent Network Statements and the associated appendices, which are in Danish only. Infrastructure data for regional railways are contained in the appendices.

Gauge

Standard.

Electrification

  • Main lines: 25kV 50Hz

At present this covers:

København - Helsingør; København - Lernacken (Swedish side of the Øresund bridge); København - Fredericia/Esbjerg; Lunderskov - Padborg (German border)/Sønderborg; København - Ringsted via the high speed line; Ringsted - Næstved; Køge Nord - Næstved.

Work is starting on Roskilde - Holbæk - Kalundborg and Aarhus - Lindholm.

  • København S-tog (suburban) network: 1650V DC (negative overhead wire).

Rule of the road

Right.

Distances

Some distances are given in appendix 6.6 of the 2018 Network Statement. Some of the regional railways' Network Statements give distance information.

Other Railways

Lokaltog A/S

Lokaltog

Lokaltog A/S and Regionstog A/S merged to form Lokaltog A/S on 1 July 2015

  • Gribskovbanen (Hillerød to Tisvildeleje and Gilleleje)
  • Frederiksværkbanen (Hillerød - Frederiksværk - Hundested Havn)
  • Hornbækbanen (Helsingør - Hornbæk - Gilleleje)
  • Lille Nord (Helsingør - Hillerød)
  • Naerumbanen (Jægersborg - Nærum)
  • Odsherredsbanen (Holbæk - Nykøbing Sj.)
  • Tølløsebanen ((Holbæk)-Tølløse - Slagelse; includes freight line to Gørlev)
  • Østbanen (Køge - Fakse Ladeplads and Rødvig). Owing to the track being in poor condition, these lines may be converted to a busway.
  • Lollandsbanen (Nykøbing F - Nakskov)

Midtjyske Jernbaner A/S

Midtjyske Jernbaner

  • Vemb - Lemvig - Thyborøn Jernbane
  • Odderbanen (Århus - Odder) Combined with Grenaabanen to form Aarhus Letbane (Aarhus light rail).

Nordjyske Jernbaner A/S

Nordjyske Jernbaner

Hjørring Privatbaner and Skagensbanen merged to form Nordjyske Jernbaner (NJ) in 2001

  • Hirtshalsbanen (Hjørring - Hirtshals)
  • Skagensbanen (Frederikshavn - Skagen)
  • Vendsysselbanen (Aalborg – Hjørring – Frederikshavn) Operated by NJ since August 2017, over BaneDanmark line

Arriva Tog A/S

Arriva

  • Vestbanen (Varde - Nørre Nebel; includes the freight-only line to Oksbøl Syd)

Arriva Tog A/S operates passenger services under franchise over BaneDanmark lines, including services between Tønder and Niebüll (Germany).

Tourist lines

The Danske Veterantogs page has links to the majority of tourist lines including:-

The Blovstrødbanen, Limfjordsbanen, Mariager-Handest Veteranjernbane and Maribo-Bandholm lines are operated by special interest groups of Dansk Jernbaneklub with its members working on some 9 heritage sites

Lemvig – Lemvig Havn. A tourist service with preserved railbuses has operated in summer on the steeply-graded branch between the main station and a quayside platform (constructed 2012) in the harbour. Trains ran intermittently until approximately 2017. However the BjergBanen website states that it is not operating at present because the track needs to be renovated before passenger services can run again.

Dates of operation of some special trains may be given on the Danmarks Jernbanemuseum website.


Rail cycling is possible on a number of lines; see the IG Draisinenfahrten website. Click on 'International', followed by 'Draisinenlinks' to obtain website details under the heading 'Draisinenstrecken in Dänemark (DK)'.

Metro

København (opened between 2002 and 2020).

A track plan for København Metro is available on the Gleisplanweb site.

Trams/LRT-Systems

Aarhus [Letbanen], Odense Letbane

The Odense Letbane is actually a Light Rail System (LRT) rather than a tramway.

A track plan for Aarhus is available on the Gleisplanweb site. Diagrams for both Aarhus and Odense are available on the UrbanRail Net Site .

Sporvejsmuseet Skjoldenæsholm (tramway museum line, ca. 2km, on course of former Ringsted – Hvalsø railway) at Skjoldenæsholm, Jystrup, Midtsjælland.

Recent and future changes

Recent changes

The connections to/from the high speed line between Køge Nord and Ølby [- Køge] came into use on 11 April 2023 with a new service from stations north of København via Køge to Næstved.

The 15 km Odense Letbane opened on 28 May 2022.

Communication Based Train Control (CBTC) signalling was implemented on the the cross-city core of the København S-bane system between Nordhavn and Sydhavn over the weekend of January 15-16 2022. The Farumbane and Ringbane lines were commissioned on 28 January 2021. This is part of a programme covering all long-distance and S-bane lines, lasting until 2030. The long-distance Fjernbane are being equipped with ERTMS level 2.

A new regional service between Slagelse and CPH Airport was introduced on 13 December 2021, greatly increasing the service on the København avoiding line.

Electric services between Ringsted and Næstved started in October 2021.

The line from Nykøbing Falster to Rødby Færge closed to passengers on 30 April 2021. As freight traffic had already ceased this was a total closure. However, most of the line will reopen when the Fehmarn belt project is commissioned, electrified and with double track.

A new branch from Lindholm to Aalborg Lufthavn opened on 14 December 2020

The new M4 line, of København metro, was opened on 28 March 2020, running from København Main Station, via the M3 Cityring Line to Østerport, where a new 2.2 km branch to two new stations at Nordhavn and Orientkaj diverges. The new line consists of a 1.9 km underground section with an elevated terminal station at Orientkaj. The project cost an estimated €310m and is expected to carry 11,000 passengers per day.

The Rødby Færge – Puttgarden train ferry lost its train service from 15 December 2019 when København – Hamburg services were diverted via the Padborg border crossing.

The new 16 km M3 line of the København Metro, the City Circle Line, opened 29 September 2019.

The København – Køge Nord – Ringsted high speed line opened on 1 June 2019. Initially it was used only by an hourly Re service between København H and Ringsted but saw greatly increased traffic from the December 2019 timetable change.

The lines from Aarhus to Odder and Grenaa have been electrified and converted to the light rail Letbane. The first section from Aarhus H to Aarhus University Hospital opened on 21 December 2017. Both Aarhus - Odder (originally planned for 23 September 2017) and Aarhus University Hospital - Lisbjergskolen (originally planned for December 2017) opened on 25 August 2018. The final section, between Skolebakken and Grenaa and between Lisbjerg and Lystrup, opened on 30 April 2019.

The line from Lindholm to Frederikshavn via Hjørring became the first to operate under ERTMS level 2 in October 2018.

Electrification of Lunderskov - Esbjerg was commissioned on 6 August 2017.

The introduction of border control checks by Sweden and the resulting congestion at København airport (Kastrup) caused by the enforced change of train there, resulted in SJ X2000 services and DSB trains from/to Ystad [for the Bornholm ferry] ceasing to call and being diverted via the airport avoiding line from 4 January 2016. By January 2017 only Ystad to København services were using the avoiding line and these were booked to call at the airport from 30 January 2017 before being completely withdrawn after loss of subsidy later in the year.

DSB services were withdrawn from Aarhus to Odder and Grenaa on 26 August 2016 for electrification and conversion to light rail (the Letbane).

Doubling of Vamdrup – Vojens (the last single track section between Fredericia and Tinglev) was completed on 7 September 2015 and of Lejre – Vipperød (the last single track section between København and Holbæk) on 18 August 2014.

A relief line for the western approach to København H opened on 9 December 2012; see DK4. This was the first phase of the planned København – Køge – Ringsted line.

The line from Nykøbing Falster to Gedser closed to passengers on 13 December 2009.

In connection with construction of the København Metro, the S-train line Grøndal – Vanløse – Solbjerg – Frederiksberg was closed in stages between 1998 and 2001, instead the S-train ring line services were extended from Grøndal to Ny Ellebjerg in the alignment of a freight line made obsolete by the Øresund fixed link. The extended ring line was complete on 16 November 2006.

The first section of the København Metro, from Nørreport to Lergravsparken and Vestamager, was opened on 19 October 2002. Nørreport to Frederiksberg opened on 29 May 2003, Frederiksberg to Vanløse on 12 October 2003 and Lergravsparken to the airport (mostly on the formation of the former Amagerbanen line) on 28 September 2007.

The line between Esbjerg and Esbjerg Havn, used by boat trains connecting with ships to and from Harwich Parkeston Quay and Newcastle Tyne Commission Quay, closed at the end of the summer timetable in 2001.

The first section of the Øresund fixed link between København and Malmö, to København Lufthavn Kastrup, opened on 28 September 1998 and the remainder on 2 July 2000, whereupon the Helsingør – Helsingborg train ferry was withdrawn.

The bridge and tunnel across the Storebælt, connecting the islands of Fyn and Sjælland, opened to rail traffic in 1997, bringing about closure of the train ferry between Nyborg and Korsør.

See also overview of Danish rail infrastructure history (in Danish).

Future changes

The new 28 km Hovedstadens Letbane - Greater Copenhagen Light Rail line is under construction and is due to open in 2025. There is a track plan at the GleisPlanWeb Site.

Communication Based Train Control (CBTC) signalling was implemented on the Farumbanen and Ringbanen S-lines on 28 January 2021. This is the first stage in a programme covering all long-distance and S-lines and lasting until 2030. The final sections were commissioned in September 2022. The current S-bane has reached its maximum capacity during rush hour and the government has authorised procurement to start for new trains, paving the way for fully automated operation from 2029. The first service to be converted to driverless operation will be the orbital Line F between Ny Ellebjerg and Hellerup, the only route that does not use the busy cross-city core through København H.
The long-distance Fjernbane are being equipped with ERTMS level 2.

In April 2020 Danish MPs approved expenditure of €7bn to build the Fehmarnbelt tunnel to Germany. Work started at Rødby at the beginning of 2021, later than originally planned owing to delays in upgrading the line on the German side. Completion is expected in mid-2029. In conjunction with this, Ringsted – Nykøbing Falster - Rødby is being doubled, electrified and upgraded for 200 km/h running. As part of this, a 4km realignment has been built just north of Glumsø.
The existing single track Storstrøms Bridge bridge,just south of Vordingborg, is being replaced by a new 3.84km bridge carrying a double track line and a motorway. The present bridge, built in 1937, will be demolished. A new bascule bridge is being built next to the existing single track King Frederik IX Bridge over the Guldborgsund at Nykøbing to enable a second track to be added.

The next line scheduled for electrification is Fredericia - Aarhus - Aalborg. Funds have also been allocated for Aalborg - Frederikshavn, Vejle - Struer and Holbæk - Kalundborg but it is likely to be a long time before this occurs.

Special Notes

Most long-distance services (IC and Lyntog) are worked by multiple units, and some trains split to serve several destinations. Displays within carriages indicate the destination of that portion of the train. Most long distance trains include a section designated for families.

See also