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DSB (railway company)

Coordinates:55°41′15″N12°34′46″E/ 55.68750°N 12.57944°E/55.68750; 12.57944
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DSB
Company typeIndependent Public Company
IndustryRail transport
Founded1 October 1885
HeadquartersCopenhagen,Denmark
Key people
Flemming Jensen, CEO
ProductsPassenger rail transport
RevenueDKK12.3 Billion (2015)[1]
DKK 522 Million (2015)[1]
DKK 745 million (2005)[2]
OwnerDanish Ministry of Transport
Number of employees
9,078 (2005 average)[2]
SubsidiariesDSB S-tog A/S, DSB Vedligehold A/S
Websitewww.dsb.dk
Danish State Railways
DSB-operated railway lines in 2018 (red).
Overview
LocaleDenmark
Dates of operation1885–
Technical
Track gauge1,435 mm(4 ft8+1⁄2in)standard gauge

DSB,an abbreviation ofDanske Statsbaner(pronounced[ˈtænskəˈstɛˀtsˌpɛːnɐ],Danish State Railways), is the largestDanishtrain operating company, and the largest inScandinavia.While DSB is responsible for passenger train operation on most of the Danish railways, goods transport and railway maintenance are outside its scope. DSB runs acommuter railsystem, called theS-train,in the area around the Danish capital,Copenhagen,that connects the different areas and suburbs in the greater metropolitan area. Between 2010 and 2017, DSB operated trains inSweden.

DSB was founded in 1885, when thestate-owned companiesDe jysk-fynske StatsbanerandDe sjællandske Statsbanermerged. DSB was established in 1885, after the state in 1867 under the name De Jutland-Fynske Statsbaner took over the private company Det Danske Jernbanedriftselskab and in 1880 they also took over the privately owned Zealand Railway Company. [3]

History

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The first railways in Denmark were built and operated by private companies. The railways inFunenandJutlandwere built byPeto and Bettswho also supplied the locomotives (built byCanada Works,Birkenhead). Most of the technical staff was also recruited from Britain, notably from theEastern Counties Railway.When Peto and Betts went intoinsolvency,the Danish state took overDet danske Jernbane-Driftsselskab(The Danish Railway Operating Company) as of 1 September 1867 under the nameDe jysk-fyenske Jernbaner(the Funen and Jutland Railways), from 1874De danske Statsbaner i Jylland og Fyn(The Danish State Railways in Jutland and Funen). The network was extended by new construction and by acquisition of the privately operated lines fromSilkeborgtoHerning(1 November 1879) and fromGrenaatoRandersandAarhus(1 April 1881).

The Danish state took overDet sjællandske Jernbaneselskab(theZealand Railway Company) on 1 January 1880, formingDe sjællandske Statsbaner(the State Railways of Zealand). With the majority of railways on both sides of theGreat Beltthus owned by the Danish state, it was not until 1 October 1885 that the companies of Jutland/Funen and Zealand merged into one national railway company,De danske Statsbaner(the Danish State Railways), the merger being finalised on 1 April 1893.

After the merger, new lines were constructed and a new generation of rolling stock and locomotives were introduced by chief mechanical engineerOtto Busse.After Busse's retirement, however, DSB ceased to design its own locomotives and increasingly came to rely on outside suppliers, mainlyBorsigofBerlin.

The first railway station in Copenhagen
The firstLittle Belt Bridgewas opened in 1935.

The 1930s were a decade of innovation and modernisation for DSB. New railway bridges were built across theLittle Belt(1935), theStorstrøm(1937) andOddesund(1938), eliminating the costly and time-consuming process of transfer by steam ferry. The suburban lines in and around Copenhagen were electrified for multiple-unit operation at 1,500 Volts DC (S-trains). Early experiments withDiesel propulsionled to the development of the all-purpose MO class heavydiesel-electricrailcar equipped formultiple-unitoperation, afterWorld War IIalso fitted forpush-pulloperation with a driving trailer. Several classes of mainline diesel-electric locomotives were also built as prototypes byBurmeister and Wainof Copenhagen andFrichsof Aarhus, but further development was cut short by theGerman occupationand the consequent shortage of oil supplies, forcing DSB to rely on coal-burning steam locomotives for mainline duties.

Coinciding with the opening of theLittle Belt Bridgein 1935, DSB introduced their newexpress trainconcept known aslyntog( "lightning trains" ). These diesel-powered three- and four-coach trains, having a power car at each end with a power pack identical to that of the MO railcar series, featured a then-impressive top speed of 120 km/h as well as a high level of comfort, and they proved themselves DSB's most commercially successful initiative of the 1930s.

World War II left DSB with a fleet of outdated and worn-out trains, and apart from a series of second-generation MO railcars and the class MT multi-purpose centercab engines built byFrichs,domestic industry was unable to provide the kind of motive power required. Instead, DSB looked to foreign suppliers.

General Motors' diesel-electric locomotives had proved themselves in the US and Canada before the war. DSB'sMV classA1A-A1A diesel locomotives, built on license from GM and delivered fromNOHABstarting in 1954, were found to be very reliable and economically feasible compared to the steam locomotives, eventually putting the age of steam to an end as well as being a decisive factor in DSB's choice of motive power for nearly three decades. They were followed by the equally successfulMX classwith a lower axle load for branch line services and theMZ classfor heavy express services.

Based on threediesel-hydraulicshunting locomotives built byHenscheland acquired by DSB,Frichsdeveloped their own version of the class MH shunter, which replaced the steam-powered shunting engines. After the success of theDeutsche Bundesbahn'sDB Class VT 11.5class onTrans Europ Expressservices, DSB acquired eleven power cars and matching intermediate cars to replace the first-generationlyntog.

Passenger train showing the red/black livery introduced in 1972.

The 1960s were marked by an increasingly poor economy for DSB, leading to a steady staff reduction throughout the decade. However, this was also accompanied by the appearance of new technology, notably the utilisation of electronic equipment, improving the safety and efficiency of DSB's railway traffic. In 1972, along with the celebration of the 125th anniversary of railways in Denmark, DSB introduced a new corporate design by architect Jens Nielsen, inspired byBritish RailandCanadian National Railways,with red as the dominant colour (with engine rooms of locomotives painted black), replacing the traditional maroon livery with yellow winged wheel symbols. DSB's position was additionally strengthened by the1973 oil crisis.

Following the lead of theNederlandse Spoorwegen,British Rail andDeutsche Bundesbahn,DSB in 1974 introduced a fixed interval timetable for its long-distance locomotive-hauledIntercitytrains as well as the commuter services to and from Copenhagen. On regional services inFunenandJutland,the prewar design MO classrailcarswere displaced by MR class DMUs, a licensed version of the Deutsche Bundesbahnclass 628.

TheIC3trains were introduced in 1990.

In 1990, after a delay of several years, theIC3trains came into use, initially aslyntog,and in 1991 as ordinary intercity trains. The IC3 trains, being a specimen of theFlexlinertype of multiple units, have a distinct appearance due to the rubber-framed ends, allowing access between trainsets when coupled together. The re-engined Flexliners are now (2014) nearing the end of their service life, but due to problems with theAnsaldo Bredabuilt successor classIC4they are expected to remain in service for another five to ten years.

TheGreat Belt Fixed Linkwas opened for railway traffic in 1997 (a year before road traffic), replacing DSB'srailway ferries.In 1997, infrastructural duties were branched off into a new agency under the Danish Ministry of Transport, Banestyrelsen (now:Banedanmark), leaving DSB with the task of train operation. A new design was presented on 30 April 1998, as well as the announcement of the "Good Trains for All" plan, seeking to replace old and less comfortable trains by 2006/2007. DSB was turned into an independent public corporation on 1 January 1999.[4]

The goods department of DSB, DSB Gods, was merged with Railion (nowDB Cargo) in 2001, and DSB now solely manages passenger rail service, including the operation of railway stations.[5]In 2003,Arriva,in competition with DSB, won the tender for operating a number of regional railway services inJutland:Tønder-Esbjerg,Esbjerg-Struer,Skjern-Aarhus,Struer-Langå-AarhusandStruer-Thisted.In 2007, theØresundstågservices were hived off into a separate company,DSBFirst,but the contract was terminated in 2011 after financial problems.[6]

DSB operated services from 2009 in Sweden.[7]In 2010, it purchased a 50 % shareholding in German operatorViasfromFrankfurt Transport Company.[8]All the operating companies in Sweden and Germany were sold between 2013 and 2019.

Logo history

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  • Former DSB S-train logo Copenhagen
    Former DSB S-train logo Copenhagen
  • DSB's third and previous logo used from 30 April 1998 to September 2014
    DSB's third and previous logo used from 30 April 1998 to September 2014
  • DSB's fourth and current logo since September 2014
    DSB's fourth and current logo since September 2014

Corporate structure

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Former DSB headquarters inCopenhagen.

DSB is an independent public state-owned corporation under theDanish Ministry of Transport and Energy.This has been the case since 1999, and is the result of a former political desire to privatise the Danish railways.[9][10]Thus, DSB now operates on a for-profit basis, although it retains certain public service commitments via contracts with the Ministry of Transport and Energy. In March 2015, the ongoing privatization process was put on hold until at least 2024, as part of a broad centre-left political majority agreement on passenger rail-transport.[11][12]

As of 2005, DSB employs about 9,000 people. Keld Sengeløv became president and CEO in February 2004, after a career in the DSB organization since 1997, but died from an undisclosed illness while travelling with friends in Scotland on 3 September 2006.[13]His successor was Søren Eriksen, who was dismissed in March 2011 following the discovery of financial and contractual irregularities.[14]He was largely exonerated in a subsequent inquiry.[citation needed]His successor, Jesper Lok, was announced in December 2011 and took office in April 2012, but resigned in 2014. Since 2015, former fighter pilot Flemming Jensen has been CEO for the corporation.[15]

Divisions

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DSB SOV (Selvstændig Offentlig Virksomhed / Independent Public Company)

  • DSB Commercial (sales and marketing)
    • DSB International (train operations abroad), DSB Detail a/s (management of shops on DSB stations)
  • DSB S-tog a/s (operation of theS-trainnetwork)
    • DSB Sales
  • DSB Long-Distance & Regional Trains
    • IC4 Programme, Sales, Onboard Service, Traffic,
  • DSB Finance
    • DSB Property Development, DSB Property
  • DSB HR & Organisation
    • Financial Management, IT, CSR
  • DSB Vedligehold A/S (Train Maintenance)

Services

[edit]
DSB 1932
DSB-operated railway lines in 1932
DSB 2018
DSB-operated railway lines in 2018
A large part of the DSB railway lines (red) and services, has been outsourced, privatized or abandoned over the years.

As an originally state-owned company, DSB has experienced several reforms since its establishment in 1885. In particular, the large scaleprivatizationreforms of Denmark in the 1990s, has resulted in the selling andoutsourcingof many railway lines and services across the country.

DSB currently operates several types of passenger trains, varying in number of stops and motive power. Apart from theS-trains,types available for the general public include:

See also

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References

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  1. ^abDSB."DSB annual report 2015"(PDF).
  2. ^abDSB."DSB annual report 2005"(PDF).dsb.dk.Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2007-07-14.
  3. ^"Danske Statsbaner - Wikimedia Commons".commons.wikimedia.org.Retrieved11 March2023.
  4. ^DSB De-NationalisedToday's Railways Europeissue 37 January 1999 page 8
  5. ^"Railion recruits another member".Railway Gazette International.2001-01-01. Archived fromthe originalon 2012-06-10.
  6. ^Veolia takes over from troubled DSBFirstRailway Gazette International28 June 2011
  7. ^DB and DSB to run Swedish regional networksRailway AgeJanuary 2010 page 14
  8. ^DSB expands into GermanyInternational Railway JournalApril 2010 page 16
  9. ^"Politisk flertal vil privatisere DSB [Political majority wants to privatise DSB]"(in Danish). DSB. 12 April 2006.Retrieved17 September2015.
  10. ^"Krav om privatisering af DSB".Berlingske Business(in Danish). 29 May 2012 [28 June 2007].Retrieved17 September2015.
  11. ^"DSB-aftale sætter ti-årigt stop for privatiseringer [DSB-agreement puts a ten-year hold on privatisations]".Arbejderen(in Danish). 11 March 2015.Retrieved17 September2015.
  12. ^"Aftale om Passagertogtrafik i Danmark 2015-2024"(in Danish). Ministry of Transport and Building. 10 March 2015.Retrieved17 September2015.The original political agreement.
  13. ^"Ny administrerende direktør konstitueret i DSB"[New CEO appointed in DSB] (in Danish). DSB. 19 May 2004.Retrieved17 June2018.
  14. ^"DSB CEO dismissed over accounting irregularities".Railway Gazette International.Retrieved2011-04-02.
  15. ^"Flemming Jensen"(in Danish). DSB.Retrieved17 June2018.

Sources

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  • Koed, Jan (1997).Danmarks Jernbaner i 150 år.Forlaget Kunst og Kultur.ISBN87-7600-199-7.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related toDanske Statsbaner.

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