Boreal Bane

Boreal Bane AS, trading, and formerly known as, AS Gråkallbanen, is a Norwegian company that operates the remaining part of the Trondheim Tramway, Norway.

It operates six trams on the Gråkall Line, that connects the city centre to parts of the suburb of Byåsen, and the recreational area at Lian.

The company took over the last remaining part of the tramway in 1990, after the former operator Trondheim Trafikkselskap had closed the Gråkall and Lade Line in 1988.

In November 2012, the company name was changed again, to Boreal Transport Midt-Norge AS, as a preparation for a coming PSO contract with AtB.

[2] Henry H. Tørhaug, a former tram user who lived at Bygrensen, took initiative to start Friends of the Gråkall Line (Norwegian: Gråkallbanens vennner) in October 1988.

It attracted many local people in Byåsen who were dissatisfied with the bus service, along with many tram enthusiasts, and politicians from Bylista.

It proposed a more rational operation of the line, limited to the remaining right-of-way from St. Olavs Gate to Lian.

The company offered a back door to several politicians, since it claimed it could operate the tram without municipal subsidies.

During the discussions, TT demanded that the municipality pay NOK 23.8 million for the trams, depots and other material, but this was rejected by the city.

An agreement had been made with the Copenhagen-based Unimex Engineering, who would sell the eleven trams to the Cairo Tramway.

On 2 January 1990, TT sent a letter to Gråkallbanen giving them the option to purchase the trams for the same price as the Egyptions, at an estimated NOK 17–20 million.

The company took the press with it to Stuttgart to negotiate the agreement, and the following Adresseavisen presented the cities new trams to the people.

Approved by the general assembly on 11 April 2005, Veolia promised additional capital of NOK 10.7 million to the company.

In 2007, it announced that it would apply to take over all bus routes in the city, that at the time were operated by Team Trafikk (the successor of Trondheim Trafikkselskap).

The company has launched several ambitious suggestions for routes to supplement Team Trafikk, but has yet to receive permission to operate any of them.

One of the Gråkallbanen's trams at the terminus St. Olavs Gate
The depot at Munkvoll