Skoppum Station

When planning of the Vestfold Line commenced in 1871,^[1] there were three main proposals for a route. The outer followed the shore of the Oslofjord, would be 111 kilometers (69 mi) and would run through Holmestrand, Horten and Åsgårdstrand before reaching Tønsberg. The combined and inner would be 107 and 102 kilometers (66 and 63 mi), respectively, and both involved building a branch line to Horten. The main argument against the coastal route was that the towns already had a good steamship service, with several daily departures.^[2] A third major alternative was to bypass the coast altogether and build down the valley of Lågendalen to Larvik.^[3]

Shares for various routes were issued in 1873,^[1] and the coastal alternative proved to be the most popular.^[4] Still, the county politicians preferred an interior route when it applied for the government to build the line.^[5] Construction of the Jarlsberg and Horten Lines commenced in 1876.^[6] The lines were taken into use on 7 December 1881. The interchange station had the spelling Skopum until 1891.^[7]

Skoppum was a third-class station, given a more extensive design than many other stations serving rural areas because of its function as a transshipment station between the Vestfold Line and the Horten Line. The station originally consisted of an office for the station master, a ticket office, a waiting room and a restaurant, run by the station master's wife. Next to the station building there was a building for handling cargo. The station also originally contained a locomotive depot, water tower and a turntable. The depot had a place for a single locomotive, which was used on the Horten Line.^[8] At the time of the opening the station was staffed by a station mater, two telegraphists and two station workers. The station master lived in the four-room apartment in the upper story of the station building.^[9]

Initially the Horten Line had four trains per direction per day, increasing to seven in 1884. It reached eleven during the 1920s and peaked with thirteen from 1946.^[10] Travel time was initially 16 minutes between Skoppum and Horten.^[11] The line's patronage peaked in the 1920, when ca. 200,000 annual passengers were transported along with between 5,000 and 15,000 tonnes of cargo.^[12] An interlocking system was installed on 19 February 1934.^[7]

Though their bus division, NSB Biltrafikk, the railway company operated both bus and train services between Skoppum and Horten from the mid-1940s.^[13] The new standard gauge was taken into use on 3 October 1949.^[14] With the gauge conversion the number of daily services to eight.^[13] Electrification of the Vestfold Line was carried out in 1957, and the Horten Line became the last segment to receive electric traction, on 11 December 1957.^[10]

NSB gradually increased its focus on bus traffic on the route, reducing the number of train services to five from 1962.^[13] NSB decided that it was cheaper to operate all services by bus, and closed down all passenger services on the Horten Line from 26 May 1967. A modest amount of freight traffic was retained.^[10] Skoppum Station was unstaffed from 1 July 1971, when centralized traffic control was installed. It continued to have a staffed ticket sale until 1 January 2001.^[7] NSB introduced its "InterCity" service from 29 May 1978. Most stations on the Vestfold Line were closed, but Skoppum was kept as the key station to serve Horten.^[15] All traffic on the Horten Line terminated in 2002 and the line was demolished in 2009.

Skoppum Station is situated 99.54 kilometers (61.85 mi) from Oslo Central Station, at an elevation of 39 meters (128 ft) above mean sea level.^[7] The station building is open and has toilets and a ticket machine and vending machines. There are four tracks at the station, although two are closed. In addition to the Horten Line, this is an outer passing loop which is about 300 meters (980 ft). The main passing loop is 547 meters (1,795 ft). There are two platforms, with track 1 next to the station and track 2 a side platform. They are 228 and 208 meters (748 and 682 ft) long, respectively, with 55-and-30-centimeter (22 and 12 in) tall platforms. There is about 100 parking spaces and a bicycle rack at the station.^[16]

Balthazar Lange was selected as the main architect for the Vestfold and Horten Lines, and thus also designed Skoppum, which was designed in Swiss chalet style. To accommodate best possible transfer between the two lines, the station building and auxiliary structures were placed in the central of an island platform, denoted as an island station. The buildings were covered with a 27-meter (89 ft) adjoined roof, called an umbrella. Although providing excellent transfer conditions, the keilbahnhof-design meant that access to the station had to take place from the southern short end.^[17] A second platform and third track serves a passing loop.^[8] The unique design has caused the station building, goods shed and umbrella to listed as heritage sites. ^[18]