“The village is paralyzed every time the ferry queue piles up”. This is how news describes the situation in Tørvikbygd in the summer of 2022. From the quay, the ferry goes across the Hardangerfjord and to Jondal. The ferry connection is on one of the main roads between East and West Norway. Especially in the summer, when many tourists come, problems arose. The inhabitants were fed up. They were afraid of dangerous traffic situations. The situation was so untenable that the mayors demanded that the county take measures. As an attempt to improve, the county put in an extra ferry. One year and NOK 16 million later, they can now see the results: Ekstraferja helped. Useful with two ferries Michael Ek has been captain of the extra ferry MF “Gulen”, which has been in scheduled traffic for 10–12 hours this summer. – I think it has gone very well, and there has been a lot of traffic, says Ek. Traffic figures show that more people have used the ferry. Nevertheless, there has been less chaos this year than last year. Ferjetal Jondal – Tørvikbygd PBE figure for 2022 and 2023, with percentage increase: May, from 38,742 to 41,599 = 7.4% June, from 45,400 to 50,096 = 10.3% July, from 58,855 to 63,393 = 7.7% * PBE is a unit of measure for passenger car units, which in practice is a volume measure, regardless of car size. A trailer is therefore recalculated to how many passenger car units it takes. Source: Fjord1 The road closures in Austlandet due to the extreme weather in August meant that many had to drive via the ferry service to get between east and west. – In those days there was chaos at times. So we were very happy that we had two ferries in operation then. But now he is excited about how the traffic will develop in the future, since many have become accustomed to half-hourly departures – instead of every hour as is normal. Satisfied motorists The local population is clear about what they think. Lillian Skippervik lives in Jondal and uses the connection often. – I hope that something will continue because there is a lot of traffic here, and it has been quite chaotic the other summers, says Lillian Skippervik. Lillian Skippervik lives in Jondal. She notices a big difference after the extra ferry arrived. Photo: Tale Hauso / news – I travel almost every week with the ferry connection. Now I don’t have to think so much about the ferry times, says Olav Solheim from Kvam. He notices that there are fewer queues now than in the past, and especially in Tørvikbygd where there has been a lot of traffic jams. – If you think about the economy, this is perhaps bad in the winter months, but in the summer when there is a lot of traffic, it is a big advantage, says Solheim. This summer, two ferries have sailed in the Hardangerfjord. Photo: Tale Hauso / news Positive politicians The last day two ferries are in operation is 31 August. The ferry is guaranteed further budget funds, but now the county must carry out an evaluation of the scheme. – The extra ferry has been necessary, and it has been a success. Had we not taken the initiative, it would have been such a chaotic situation that it would have been unsafe and dangerous for traffic, says county mayor Jon Askeland (Sp). The price tag of NOK 16 million does not scare the opposition in the county council either. – The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. The traffic figures also show great growth these months, says Terje Søviknes in the FRP. – So far we are positive because it looks like it has solved the problem with queuing, but we have to evaluate what we have got back for this licence, says Silja Ekeland Bjørkly in Vestland Høgre.
ttn-69
Extra ferry between Jondal and Tørvikbygd solved the problem of traffic chaos – news Vestland
