Oslo commuter traffic is regularly disrupted by the appearance of invisible trains on controller screens.
Train traffic controllers regularly sight trains on their screens and boards when there are no real trains on the tracks, newspaper Dagsavisen reports.
These false sighting occur several times a year, and are due to electrical tension fields and earthing problems that give equipment the impression that there are trains where there are not. When this occurs, controllers must turn to alternative methods to steer train traffic.
Often this means bringing trains to a halt and searching for the source of the error. The 'invisible trains' undeniably cause chaos and delays but are not considered a safety hazard.
"But just an hour of stoppage can have major consequences," said information chief Ellen Svendsvoll at the Norwegian National Rail Administration (JBV).
The Oslo rail tunnel is called the 'Mother of all bottlenecks' in railway circles, with 600 trains passing through every day, and with the slightest delay spreading out to affect traffic around the country.
"False sightings on the tracks are a challenge for punctuality because one cannot send a train there until the track is cleared. With the traffic density in the Oslo Tunnel there isn't much leeway," Erik Johnsen, director of the Norwegian Railway Inspectorate, told Dagsavisen.
Aftenposten's Norwegian reporterNina Lødemel
Aftenposten English Web DeskJonathan Tisdall
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