Falsterbobanan

in Swedish

Falsterbobanan

In the summer of 2004, when the Falsterbo Railway celebrated its 100th anniversary, the cultural association Calluna produced an exhibition about the railway and its history. The exhibition was shown in Falsterbo, Skanör, Höllviken, and Vellinge, as well as during TeknikHobby 2004 at the Technical Museum in Malmö. The booklet "The Train Has Left!" can be purchased at the libraries in Höllviken and Skanör, at ICA Toppen in Höllviken, or through www.calluna.nu

The Train Arrives!

As early as 1886, the Malmö–Trelleborg railway (MTJ) had been established, with Vellinge as one of the stations along the way. In 1904, a branch line was built from Vellinge to Skanör and Falsterbo (HSFJ). The station buildings received their distinctive style from cathedral architect Theodor Wåhlin, who was inspired by the Baltic Gothic of medieval churches.

The stations were Åkeshög, Kungstorp, Fotevik, Ljunghusen, Skanör, and Falsterbo.

To make the railway profitable, with large amounts of freight and passengers, the company sold lots for villa construction and built the Falsterbohus Hotel. The hotel experienced its heyday during World War I and the interwar period, but by then the railway company had already sold its interests, as the investment was considered too risky.

When the Malmö–Continent railway was built between Malmö and Trelleborg in 1898, it took over much of the freight traffic to the continent, as well as all mail transport. The company had invested in a straighter route and stronger rails, which allowed higher speeds than MTJ.

HSFJ’s main source of income came from the Hököpinge sugar factory, established in 1892. The transport of sugar beets during the autumn campaigns provided good but highly irregular income.

Bankruptcy

In 1919, however, the railway company went bankrupt, and buses were introduced between Falsterbo and Vellinge. It took five years for the bankrupt company to find a financial solution, but in 1925, a new company was founded with municipalities and businesses as stakeholders. The main contributor was the Sugar Company, which, in return for exclusive rights to beet transports, provided the project with loans.

The small station at Åkeshög was then closed, and instead, a station in Höllviken was built, where less wealthy groups – such as teachers and clerks – could afford to spend their summers.

In Höllviken and Kämpinge, hotels, restaurants, and dance halls were also built, generating income for the railway. These, however, were financed with private money.

The railway was never particularly profitable, with earnings amounting to only a few hundred kronor per year. The Sugar Company eventually bought all the shares in this and several other railways in Söderslätt, which gave rise to the nickname “The Beet Railways”.

Söderslätt was one of the most railway-dense regions in Europe, surpassed only by areas in Germany and Belgium.

The Train Departs!

In 1943, the state bought all of these railways, modernizing some and closing down others. SJ also operated a large bus service that directly competed with the railway, and often trains and buses ran parallel to each other.

In 1955, Malmö Västra was closed as the starting point for the line, as it had become too disruptive to have a railway running straight through central Malmö.

From Södervärn, the so-called Bath Trains departed. They were Sweden’s last regular steam trains, which every summer Sunday transported thousands of Malmö residents eager for the beach to Höllviken and Falsterbo – at half the regular fare.

In the same year, railbuses were introduced on weekdays. The original stretch to Trelleborg was closed in 1960, and by 1971, the entire Falsterbo Railway was shut down.

The immediate reason was the planned highway out to the Näset peninsula. Many protested the closure and bade farewell to the last train with heavy hearts. But, as one stationmaster put it: ”If only half of those who are now complaining had actually taken the train, it would still have been running.”

Wondering why the abbreviation HSFJ was used for the Vellinge–Skanör–Falsterbo Railway? At that time, Vellinge was spelled with an “Hv”.

The dance halls were lively and full during the 1920s, 30s, and 40s. In 1928, investments were made in Strandbaden. A restaurant, dance hall, campsite, and even a water slide out in the sea were built (see the picture above) – all to attract Malmö’s city dwellers to spend a summer’s day or two by the sea. However, at Falsterbohus it was forbidden to change clothes on the beach, which meant it remained reserved for the local villa owners who had bathing huts.

References

• About BiBB, a media company and an encyclopedia 4.0
• Text: Christian Kindblad

Published: 2004.12 Updated: 2025.09.05

Kategorier 25 Skåne 5

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