The standard gauge line lacks electrification and centralized traffic control; it is solely used by freight trains, mostly hauling lumber and wood chippings.

The section from Flisa Station to Elverum was approved in 1894, but a dispute concerning the route postponed construction for thirteen years.

The line runs through the traditional district of Solør, through the municipalities of Kongsvinger, Grue, Åsnes, Våler and Elverum.

The line could, if it received centralized traffic control and all level crossings were removed, be rated for 160 kilometers per hour (99 mph) without further modification.

[6] The rationale for building a railway through Solør was first and foremost tied to the large lumber resources in the area, especially in Finnskogen.

In addition to it being perceived as having a good return on investment, the limited amount of funding available cautioned the commission to recommend trunk routes which would largely be futile unless completed to their intended termini.

[12] By 1888 the economy had begun to grow again and the Sverdrup's Cabinet therefore proposed that three new railways be built, including the first part of the Solør Line, from Kongsvinger to Flisa.

As was common at the time, a local contribution was required, constituting 1 million Norwegian krone funded through an investment company with a broad public and private ownership.

[19] Although popular for carrying passengers and cargo, the lumber industry was never an early adopter of timber trains, instead remaining loyal to log floating.

Several places processing industries, especially wood-based, were established as the railway allowed for easy export of the products.

[26] Political work to extend the line to Elverum started even before the opening of the southern half, and was debated in Parliament in 1893.

With a span of 84 meters (276 ft), Haugsfoss Bridge was the longest in the country at the time and work was subcontracted to a German company.

Construction cost NOK 2,869,750,[32] giving the lowest kilometer price of any mainline railway ever built in Norway.

[42] The opening of a military base at Haslemoen in the 1950s had increased the patronage significantly and by 1961 it had 141,000 annual passengers, between thirteen daily services.

[40] To allow for the heavier Di 3 diesel locomotives, the southern part of the line needed to be upgraded to the same standard as the northern.

Sturdier 30 kilogram per meter (60 lb/yd) tracks were laid on top of an improved layer of ballast, allowing the line speed to increase from 65 to 95 kilometers per hour (40 to 59 mph).

[45] The work allowed NSB to capture a significant amount of the lumber transport after the forest industry terminated its log floating operations in the late 1960s.

This resulted in a proposal to instead operate the long-distance trains between Trondheim and Oslo on the Røros Line via Solør instead of via Hamar.

[46] After considerable political discussion, Hedmark County Council approved a new bus service between Kongsvinger and Elverum and onwards to Hamar.

[48] The service was a trade-off, as the longer distance via Solør added an hour to the travel time for passengers from Østerdalen.

After a three-year trial, the long-distance trains moved back to Hamar and two daily local services were reintroduced through Solør.

[53] A dramatic increase of export lumber took place after 2012, when three major pulp and paper mills were closed in rapid succession – Norske Skog Follum, Peterson Moss and Södra Cell Tofte.

Nationally the amount transported by rail tripled in a few years, a large portion of which ran along the Solør Line.

As of 2012 the line saw an average ten to eleven weekly southbound trainloads of lumber and wood choppings,[55] although this number has since increased.

Each platform was 90 meters (300 ft) long, with the station building in the center and the outhouse and cargo house placed at each end.

They therefore represent a unique heritage of authentic Swiss chalet style buildings from a period with heavy construction of railways.

[65] The primary impact of electrification would be a severe cut in operating costs of the railway companies, and thus better margins for forest owners, who could increase their export.

Intermodule cargo trains operate from Oslo to Trondheim via the Dovre Line, despite its higher elevation, because of the electric traction.

Both the track and stations hold sufficient standard, but a concern is that some level crossings may need removing to allow for increased traffic.

It recommended that the line be electrified and receive centralized traffic control first, which would allow for direct train services onwards to Oslo.