In recent years, the Swedish company BLS Rail has delivered timber and materials to a number of locations in Norway.

Their freight trains have been in Halden and Elverum, passing Våler, Skien and Drammen – even Narvik. Among other things, they deliver timber to the paper producer Norske Skog.

At the same time reveals one report from the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate extensive deficiencies in transport safety. The company could not present any assessments of hazards and measures to prevent errors and accidents when they were investigated.

They are not the only ones in the freight train industry who receive criticism.

Both BLS Rail and the Norwegian company Grenlandsbanen has so “extensive” safety deficiencies at the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate announced further action.

Several others are criticized to varying degrees for safety deficiencies.

Bad hidden secret

In recent years, there have been several derailments and accidents with freight trains involved.

The reports came in December, but has not been further discussed. In total, the company has been employed to run together with “dangerous goods” on almost the entire Norwegian railway network.

– It is a badly hidden secret that very few, if any, actually follow the regulations at all times on all counts, says director of the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate Erik Reiersøl-Johnsen to Dagbladet.

– It does not have to be serious things. But the interest in actually applying the regulations seems to be lower than we would like, Reisersøl-Johnsen continues.

Swedish Hector Rail is also criticized for shortcomings in the handling of incidents and in the follow-up of risk assessments. A lot of the report whether they are skimmed and exempt from publicity.

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Does not assess hazards

BLS Rails errors are apparently among the most extensive. They have more than ten deviations from Norwegian transport regulations:

• Lack of emergency drills and assessments to prevent errors, dangers and accidents in Norway.
• Lack of follow-up of reported deviations. The company does not have an overview of which incidents have occurred in Norway, according to the audit.
• Lack of maintenance requirements is documented when the company rents out equipment, also in Norway. This could have an impact on safety, according to the audit.
• Lack of documentation of what competence the driver and crew have.

BLS Rail responds to Dagbladet that safety is crucial in all activity and that a company cannot have a license without it. They claim that they follow Norwegian requirements for railway operations and have rectified the order from the audit, which had only in March.

– The discrepancies that the report describes have been dealt with in our organization and the necessary measures have been implemented. Changes and measures have been implemented in our safety management system, writes Jørn Lindberget, CEO of BLS Rail, in an e-mail.

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Repeated errors

The report on Grenland Rail also describes many as comprehensive. They have not followed up previous risk assessments and reported incidents systematically.

The same errors have also been discovered earlier, according to the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate.

Grenland Rail does not comment on the report directly, but points out to Dagbladet that they have corrected the discrepancies.

Swedish Hector Rail stated that they were not available to comment on the case on Friday.

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Only concerned with driving

All these companies are still on track in Norway. The Norwegian Railway Inspectorate recommends that the health authorities consider it a danger to life and life, take it immediately. But that freight train companies are often small and newly established and do not have the safety routines in order.

– Many people are only interested in driving trains and think that once you have got on the tracks, it is perfectly fine to drive as much as they can. But they do not follow up that requirements in the regulations are met, says the director of the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate.

Trains carrying people often have agreements with the state and larger companies.

Freight trains, on the other hand, can start as soon as you have the necessary safety certificate, he points out.

– There are often small companies that want to operate in a niche. They have often been given resources for other things than train transport, and then it is much easier to end up in a situation where safety is not a good enough priority, says Reiersøl-Johnsen.

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Demands

Norske Skog, which has BLS Rail as its genitals through Nortømmer, writes that they expect their suppliers to follow Norwegian laws and regulations.

– BLS Rail has not been a subcontractor to Norske Skog before 1 April, ie after the remarks according to the company were closed, says Carsten Dybevig, director of communications and contact at Norske Skog.