This is Östra Södermanlands Järnväg
The Museum Association of the Eastern Södermanlands Järnväg (ÖSlJ) is a non-profit association with the goal of collecting and preserving locomotives and carriages from the country’s smallest railways, those with only 600 mm gauge, and to display them in traffic. The activities are conducted on a non-profit basis and we would like to see you as
a member , active or supportive.
The gauge, 600 mm, is the narrowest used for general passenger and freight traffic. In Sweden, seven railways have used this gauge for general traffic. They were built between 1891 and 1909. Locomotives, carriages and other equipment from these small railways represent older railway technology than is the case on wider gauges because they were closed early, most of them in the 1930s. Fortunately, many locomotives and carriages were sold to industrial railways, which kept them in operation into the 1960s; from there, ÖSlJ was able to build up its historic vehicle fleet.
The goal of the ÖSlJ museum railway is to show a living narrow-gauge railway as it could have been during the first decades of the 20th century. We thus have a concrete cultural-historical goal – to show the public that railways of this small size were actually a functioning and important means of transport for the area they served. The economy is completely dependent on passengers, as the railway’s costs must be covered by ticket revenue and sales activities.
The work on the railway is carried out voluntarily by the association’s members without any compensation. Of the association’s total of nearly 1000 members, about a hundred are active in the practical operation of our living museum.
The ÖSlJ railway is legally fully equal to all other railways in Sweden. The operations are therefore supervised by the Swedish Transport Agency (Transportstyrelsen), which conducts regular audits and issues permits for us to operate.
Become a member
As a member, you get free travel on our regular trains and the ÖSlJ-nytt newspaper four times a year. You also have the opportunity to participate in voluntary work within the association.
Participate
Do you want to drive a steam locomotive, become a steamer or conductor? Work with older technology or just get involved in an association? You are always welcome as an active member. No prior knowledge is required, there is a lot to learn and you are guaranteed to have a rewarding hobby
N.B working with safety-critical tasks requires fluency in Swedish. There are however a lot of other opportunities for those who don’t meet this requirement.
Milestones in the history of ÖSlJ
1959
Östra Södermanlands Järnväg starts in 1959 under modest conditions on the Lina mills’s clay track outside of Södertälje.
1965
ÖSlJ get the opportunity to take over the section Mariefred – Läggesta, when SJ ceases it’s service on the route.
1970
600-mm tracks to the steamboat pier are being laid, thus creating the possibility of interconnection with the steamship S/S Mariefred.
1973
Line extension to Läggesta Södra whereby ÖSlJ will have its own station in Läggesta. However, the station building will never be more than a small resort.
1997
Svealandsbanan is inaugurated, and Läggesta station is moved up to a railway viaduct about a hundred meters from the old station. The site is taken over by ÖSlJ, which rebuilds the yard to narrow gauge.
2011
In May, the Läggesta – Taxinge-Näsby section of the railway will be inaugurated by His Majesty the King. This gives us a railway length of 11.2 km: Mariefred Steamboat Station – Mariefred – Läggesta Nedre – Taxinge-Näsby.