The route runs through Trøndelag and Nordland counties, carrying a combination of commuter, long-haul passenger and freight trains.

[11] The line continues along a rugged section often hugging the sides of fjords until Mo i Rana Station (497.98 km or 309.43 mi).

[13] The section onward to Finneid Station (671.08 km or 416.99 mi) has steep terrain and the line hugs the mountainside, frequently entering tunnels.

Locally, there were many protests against the line bypassing such a large town, but the cost of the bridge made parliament choose the southern alternative.

[22] In 1872, Ole Tobias Olsen proposed in Morgenbladet that a railway be built between Mo i Rana via Haparanda, Sweden, to Saint Petersburg, Russia.

[24] On 23 August 1876, the Nord-Trøndelag committee published a report to encourage national authorities to consider the line,[25] which resulted in surveying starting in 1877.

This spurred the committees work and a cooperation with Nordland County Council was initiated to increase the projects priority by national politicians.

Costs were estimated at 8.75 million Norwegian krone (NOK), of which 15 percent was to be financed with local grants and the remainder by the state.

Sunnan was a natural place to halt construction, as it is located at the foot of the lake of Snåsavatnet, allowing connection with steam ships.

The line through Steinkjer was controversial, as the proposal would split the town in two, and there was an intense debate as to which side of the river the station should be built on.

125,000 cubic meters (4,400,000 cu ft) of earthwork was removed, half with a steam shovel, and largely used to build reclaimed land for the railway's right-of-way through Steinkjer.

[44] In 1896, Olsen applied for a concession to build a railway up the Dunderland Valley to connect his mining claims to Mo i Rana, but this was rejected by the state.

[49] However, in 1902, the Dunderland Iron Ore Company started building a private railway to connect its mine at Storforshei to their port at Gullsmedvik in Mo.

On 10 June 1908, Parliament unanimously passed these lines in the Railway Plan of 1908, which included the 79-kilometer (49 mi) long section from Sunnan via Snåsa to Grong, albeit without a branch to Namsos.

The main route discussion involved where to run the line immediately north of Grong, where a detour was rejected which would have cut the length of the Medjå Tunnel.

[77] Work north of Mosjøen, on the 41.6-kilometer (25.8 mi) section to Elsfjord, started in 1935, based on a detailed plan approved by Parliament the same year.

The section onward to Finneidfoss could not be opened due to a slide in a cutting north of Bjerka, caused by erroneous earth-moving techniques.

In early 1942 construction of two segments were started, north of Mo i Rana as well as the Polar Line which ran from Fauske and northward.

The official opening of the Nordland Line was carried out on 7 June 1962 by King Olav V.[98] The mines at Storforsrei reopened in 1964 and again needed to use the railway for transport, being hauled by Di 3s.

[100] NSB introduced Class 92 diesel multiple units in 1985, cutting travel time on local services between Steinkjer and Trondheim by 25 minutes.

The initial plans called to the continued use of the Class 92 rolling stock, but saw change in schedules and the upgrading platforms for NOK 15 million.

[110] NSB introduced their Class 93 locomotives in 2001: starting on 7 January they were used on the Salten Commuter Rail, which ran a higher frequency of departures between Rognan and Bodø.

[116] The exception is Trondheim Central Station, a plastered brick building designed by Balthazar Lange in New Renaissance style.

[124] Hell station at the mouth of Stjørdalselva at the eponymous Stjørdalsfjord ( part of Trondheimsfjord) is left northwards via Trondheim airport and the line crosses over to Åsenfjorden through the coastal hinterland.

Further north, the route runs along the eastern shore of the aforementioned fjord, partly inland, via Verdalsøra to Steinkjer, which marks one end of Beitstadfjorden.

To get to Mo i Rana, the route crosses inland over Drevjedalen valley, passing by Drevvatnet, in order to reach Elsfjord at the eponymous fjord and runs alongside its coastline via Bjerka to the main branch of Ranfjorden, where the mouth of Ranelva is located right at the fjord's northern end, in Mo i Rana.

Ranelvas valley acts as traffic corridor both for European route E6 and the railway and it then leads up to the crossing of Polar circle an, a little bit northwards, the line's summit at about 700m above sea level (Saltfjellet).

Again, the route runs alongside a fjord's flank northwards to Fauske, where it changes direction westwards to reach the end, Bodø.

Police had closed both Nordlandsbanen and E6 until further notice, [131] to investigate the cause of the accident, [132] evaluate risks of further rockslides and organize a towing operation for the derailed train cars.

Since the 6th of November 2024 the E6 road below the railway line has been reopened for traffic under guidance, with intermittent closures for up to half an hour, to allow for work on the tracks that causes rockfall.