Major disruptions on the railway. One route will come to a complete halt

The strike began on 18 September. Initially, 46 train drivers took part, affecting the journeys of thousands of passengers every day. Now, the protest will be expanded. The Norwegian Train Drivers' Union (NLF) announced that from 5 October, the number of striking workers will increase to 72.

On Monday, another 26 train drivers will join the protest. The largest number of new participants will be affected by the strike in Kongsvinger, where the NLF has designated an additional 19 employees. Following the expansion, the protest there will involve 20 train drivers. In Hamar, 30 people will be on strike, while in Oslo there will be 16.

The NLF says the expansion of the protest is due to the lack of an agreement with Vy. The union demands that Vy train drivers receive the same pay as Flytoget employees in connection with the planned merger of the companies in 2028. The employers' organisation Spekter, representing Vy, rejects this demand. According to Spekter, implementing it would mean pay increases three times higher than the raises received this year by other employees. NLF chairman Rolf Ringdal said that the parties are not currently holding talks, but the union is ready to meet should a new initiative arise.

On Monday, 193 services will be cancelled in eastern Norway. Particularly major changes will affect the R14 Asker–Kongsvinger route, where 40 of the 42 scheduled services will not operate. This amounts to 95.2% of services. The RE10 Drammen–Lillehammer line will also be severely reduced, with 28 services cancelled on Monday, or 65.1%.

On Tuesday, the number of cancelled services in the eastern part of the country will rise to 241. All 42 services on the R14 Asker–Kongsvinger route will be cancelled, while 31 services on the RE10 Drammen–Lillehammer line will not run, or 72.1%. Vy's communications director, Åge Christoffer Lundeby, explains that the absence of one train driver can affect many services if they were scheduled to prepare a train set for a full-day timetable. For this reason, the number of cancellations may change every day, as may the list of routes affected by disruptions.

Swedish rail operator SJ also runs trains on the Oslo–Lillehammer and Oslo–Kongsvinger routes, which are not covered by the strike. However, the effects of the protest also concern other railway employees. This week, Vy sent notices of temporary layoffs to 26 conductors — 13 each in Hamar and Lillehammer.