Editing Vy (section)

==History==
[[File:Norges Statsbaner logo.svg|thumb|Former NSB logo (2005–2019)]]
On 1 December 1996, the largest structural change in Norwegian railway history in the 20th century occurred. The old Norwegian State Railways was split into three separate governmental agencies. The ownership, maintenance and construction of the track was transformed to the newly created government agency Norwegian National Rail Administration while a new Norwegian Railway Inspectorate was created to supervise all railway operations in the country. NSB was renamed '''NSB BA''' and created as a [[limited company]], wholly owned by the Ministry of Transport and Communications. Also, NSB was made a [[Concern (business)|concern]], with [[NSB Biltrafikk]] (now Vy Buss) and NSB Eiendom (later [[ROM Eiendom]], in 2017 succeeded by [[Bane NOR]] Eiendom) made subsidiaries of NSB.

In 1998, the new [[Oslo Airport, Gardermoen]] opened, replacing the old [[Oslo Airport, Fornebu]] that had been too small since the 1980s. As part of the political compromise to build the new airport, NSB faced a dual mandate. On one hand, the imperative was to establish environmentally sustainable ground infrastructure, prompting the decision to construct a [[high-speed railway]] spanning {{convert|56|km|adj=on}} from Oslo Central Station to the airport, resulting in a 19-minute travel time. Concurrently, political stipulations dictated that the airport's development should not burden taxpayers financially; thus, the entire project was slated for financing through loans. The result was that the airport was to be financed, built and operated by the [[Avinor|Civil Aviation Administration]] subsidiary Oslo Lufthavn AS while the rail connection was to be financed, built and operated by the NSB subsidiary [[Flytoget|NSB Gardermobanen]]. But problems arose during the construction of the [[Gardermoen Line]] because of a leak in the [[Romerike Tunnel]], resulting in major [[cost overrun|budget overruns]] and a delay in the opening of the tunnel. Still, Norway's first high speed railway line opened on time on 8 October 1998 at the same time as the new airport, though the Romerike Tunnel was not opened until 22 October 1999, more than a year after its scheduled opening. The service is operated using 16 custom built [[GMB Class 71|Class 71]] electric multiple units, with a capacity for 168 passengers and maximum speed of {{convert|210|km/h|abbr=on}}.<ref>[http://www.flytoget.no/Templates/Informasjon.aspx?id=116] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061018071858/http://www.flytoget.no/Templates/Informasjon.aspx?id=116|date=October 18, 2006}}</ref>

NSB tried to modernize itself in the late 1990s through the acquisition of new rolling stock and a new [[brand name|brand]] image. The first stock to be delivered were 22 [[NSB El 18|El 18]] electric locomotives. These were meant to take over passenger train traffic in Southern Norway while the [[NSB El 16|El 16]]s and [[NSB El 14|El 14]]s were moved to the freight division and the [[NSB El 17|El 17]]s were scrapped, relegated to shunting or sold to the [[Flåm Line]]. The new locomotives were capable of speeds up to {{convert|200|km/h|round=5}}. For the diesel lines, NSB attempted to buy 12 [[NSB Di 6|Di 6]] from [[Siemens AG|Siemens]], but had to return them after they failed to operate sufficiently in the northern Norwegian cold. NSB also decided to re-brand itself with three district brands: [[NSB Signatur]] (express trains), [[NSB Agenda]] (regional trains) and [[NSB Puls]] (local trains). At the same time, NSB ordered new electric multiple units, first of all for the new Airport Express Train service, Class 71. This was followed up with 16 new Signatur trains of [[NSB Class 73|Class 73]] that were to be used on the express services on the [[Bergen Line]], the [[Dovre Line]] and the [[Sørlandet Line]] and equipped with [[tilting train|tilting]] technology. This was an attempt to create a high speed railway service using existing rail track, though the operating times between Oslo and the termini were only reduced by about 10 minutes. These trains were painted blue and grey, and were the first non-red trains to be operated by NSB in decades. At the same time, NSB announced the introduction of the Agenda concept, that was to replace the [[NSB InterCity Express]] services and the diesel services. While the Class 70s were simply repainted, the diesel services on the [[Nordland Line]], the [[Rauma Line]] and the [[Røros Line]] were upgrades with 15 new [[NSB Class 93|Class 93]] units in 2001, though criticized for lack of comfort, have increased the speed on the railways. NSB also discontinued night train services on the Rauma Line and Røros Line. Starting in 2002, NSB also received 36 new electrical local trains, [[NSB Class 72|Class 72]]. These were painted grey/green (for the use of the brand name ''Puls'') and were put in the [[Oslo Commuter Rail]] and [[Jæren Commuter Rail]]. NSB has now discontinued the use of brand names on its rail products.

By 2002, the [[Bondevik's Second Cabinet]] wanted to further [[deregulation|deregulate]] the Norwegian railway sector, and made NSB a [[aksjeselskap|limited company]] '''NSB AS''' on 1 July. NSB had been through a process of making the company more of a corporation, with the IT section made the subsidiary [[Arrive (company)|Arrive]] and the maintenance transformed to [[Mantena (company)|Mantena]]. NSB also purchased part of the Swedish [[Tågkompaniet]] while the old freight train section NSB Gods was transformed to [[CargoNet]]. 45% of the subsidiary was then sold to the [[Statens Järnvägar]] successor [[Green Cargo]]. In 2004, the government also split NSB Gardermobanen in two, deleting the companies debt, transferring the track it owned to Jernbaneverket and the train operations to a new, government-owned enterprise, the [[Flytoget|Airport Express Train]].

On 24 April 2019, NSB was renamed Vygruppen and rebranded as Vy (it is a Scandinavian word meaning vision, outlook, overview or prospect).<ref>[https://www.railjournal.com/regions/europe/nsb-and-nettbuss-merge-to-become-vy/ NSB and Nettbuss merge to become Vy] ''[[International Railway Journal]]'' 13 March 2019</ref><ref>[https://www.railwaygazette.com/news/news/europe/single-view/view/nsb-group-rebrands-as-vy.html NSB Group rebrands as Vy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024094010/https://www.railwaygazette.com/news/news/europe/single-view/view/nsb-group-rebrands-as-vy.html |date=2020-10-24 }} ''[[Railway Gazette International]]'' 25 April 2019</ref> According to a survey by the [[Language Council of Norway]], the name change was only supported by 7% of Norwegians.<ref>"[https://www.aftenposten.no/kultur/i/2Gbw4x/Folk-flest-misliker-navnene-Vy_-Equinor-og-Oslo-Met Folk flest misliker navnene Vy, Equinor og Oslo Met]," ''[[Aftenposten]]'', 2 July 2019</ref>