The matter in summary: On Tuesday, the biggest transport investigation of all time was presented, which deals with Northern Norway. The Norwegian Road Administration recommends spending NOK 184 billion on upgrading transport in Northern Norway. The Norwegian Railway Directorate believes that the Nord-Norgebanen will be too expensive, with a cost of NOK 281 billion for a full development. Development of the Nord-Norgebanen is not recommended due to poor socio-economic profitability, negative effects on nature and the environment, climate and reindeer husbandry. A significant strengthening of the existing railway lines, Nordlandsbanen and Ofotbanen, is recommended. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to new assessments of important transport measures in Norway. The need for cheaper plane tickets in the north is pointed out in a security policy picture. A ferry-free E6 route is being investigated in Nordland. The summary is made by an AI service from OpenAi. The content is quality assured by news’s journalists before publication. On Tuesday, the largest ever transport investigation was presented in Narvik. It was road director Ingrid Dahl Hovland in the Norwegian Road Administration who presented the report in Narvik today. – Today we are delivering two major reports. Two concept selection studies. It is KVU Nord-Norgebanen and KVU Nord-Norge, she said. She says that the Swedish Road Administration has consulted with the Armed Forces, municipalities, business, the Sámi Parliament and young people. – Involving the young has been very important. They are the ones who will carry the country forward after us. In total, the agencies recommend spending NOK 184 billion on upgrading transport in Northern Norway. These are the recommendations for Northern Norway: New approach to Tromsø Improvement of the E6 between Narvik and Skjærvøykrysset Improvement of the E10 and Ofotbanen Ferry Tysfjorden Improvement of national highway 80 between Bodø and Fauske New E6 between Megården and Mørsviksbotn Improvement of the Nordlandsbanen Do not recommend the Nord-Norgebanen Many have were excited about how expensive the development of a railway between Fauske and Tromsø would be calculated to be. Already on Tuesday, news learned that the project was going to cost over NOK 200 billion. This was also shown by railway director Knut Sletta, when he presented the estimated costs A full development, from Fauske to Tromsø with a side arm to Harstad, will have a cost of NOK 281 billion. Fauske to Tromsø without an arm to Harstad: NOK 234 billion Narvik to Tromsø: NOK 111 billion He said that the Norwegian Railway Directorate does not recommend the construction of the Nord-Norgebanen from Fauske to Tromsø. This is how they conclude: “The development of a Nord-Norgebane will both result in poor socio-economic profitability and negative effects on nature and the environment, climate and reindeer herding”. It also emerged that large parts of the track will be in a tunnel. There will be 78 per cent tunnel between Fauske and Narvik and 62 per cent tunnel between Narvik and Tromsø. In summary, the directorate will not recommend any new railway lines north of Fauske or Narvik for the following reasons: Poor socio-economic profitability. Strong increase in greenhouse gas emissions Major territorial conflicts. Want to strengthen Nordlandsbane and Ofotbanen Sletta says that they have gone out of their way to obtain sufficient information to make a good socio-economic analysis. This includes climate and environment in addition to the financial framework. – Based on our analyses, we recommend a significant strengthening of the existing railway lines. That means Nordlandsbanen and Ofotbanen. They do a significant proportion of the transport work between north and south. Large quantities of groceries go north. A large and increasing proportion of fish and seafood goes south, says Sletta. He emphasizes that the Nordlandsbanen has been declared overloaded. Both for goods and passenger traffic. – We do not recommend going ahead with the development of Nord-Norgebane. It is based on the socio-economic analyses. It will have major negative effects on nature, the climate, the environment and reindeer husbandry, says Sletta. The Minister: Gives us a good overview – Thank you for these two concept selection investigations. I receive them on behalf of myself and Bjørnar Skjæran, said Transport Minister Jon Ivar Nygård (Ap) when he was handed the recommendations. – I am glad we can be here in Narvik on historical grounds to have this presented. Facts about the study KVU Northern Norway is a concept selection study that looks at the entirety of the transport system in Northern Norway, and has been carried out by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration, Avinor, the Coastal Administration and the Norwegian Railway Directorate in collaboration. The Directorate of Railways has carried out the KVU Nord-Norgebanen, which will evaluate the railway on the section between Fauske and Tromsø, with a possible branch line to Harstad. The assessments from there are included as part of the overall transport system in KVU Northern Norway. Both reports are based on a common knowledge base and will be delivered to the Minister for Transport on 27 September 2023. The ministry will now familiarize itself with the work that has been done. – It shows that we have skilled and competent transport companies in Norway. These KUUs look far into the future. Both what comes from need, and which solutions can be used. Transport Minister Jon Ivar Nygård (Ap) accepted the report on behalf of the government. Photo: Henrik Einangshaug / news – It is important for the government to ensure good transport for everyone who lives in Northern Norway. It is sparsely populated and long distances present significant transport challenges. – Business needs more efficient and predictable transport. We have to see the whole and all the transport needs in context. The two KVUs contribute to giving us a good overview and what considerations we must take into account. The war in Ukraine changes a lot in Finland and Sweden’s entry into NATO is highlighted as a “game changer” in the work on new transport plans in northern Norway, according to news’s sources. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to completely new assessments of what are important transport measures in Norway, according to the report. In the past, Norway has been NATO’s border with Russia in the north. And an attack on NATO in Norway would then have to take place from north to south. When the Finnish border is NATO’s border with Russia, the corridors to Sweden and Finland, through northern Norway, become very important for the allies. This means that, in particular, double track on Ofotbanen and improvement of the weather-exposed E10 over Bjørnfjell in Narvik must be prioritized, according to the report presented today. – Double track on Ofotbanen will be more important for the Armed Forces in the future. Both for the movement of material over track, but also for transporting them out at Narvik Harbour, says a source to news. The Norwegian Defense Forces are not represented during the presentation of the report today. But sources in the Norwegian Armed Forces confirm to news that they have contributed to the investigation. The E10 over Bjørnfjell is a bottleneck, but at the same time an important transport route to Sweden in northern Norway. The road is very exposed to the weather. Photo: Benjamin Fredriksen / news Cheaper plane tickets The report also points to the need for cheaper plane tickets in the north in a security policy picture. news has previously mentioned that it costs around NOK 20,000 to fly from Finnmark to Bergen. From 1 April, the government has decided that the prices on the so-called FOT routes will be cut by up to 50 per cent. The report points to the importance of cheaper plane tickets in order to maintain settlement in the rural areas. As well as showing a presence in the north opposite Russia. There must be real concern that the districts will be emptied of people and expertise in the future. Especially in Finnmark. Ferry-free E6 in the long run news also knows that one of the concepts investigated in the report is a ferry-free E6 route in Nordland. Today, there are several different ferry connections across the Vestfjorden and Tysfjorden in Nordland that transport people and goods from south to north. The only detour along the road is via Sweden. The Tysfjord divides Norway in two: This is the only point where you are still completely dependent on ferries to get north-south in the country. news has previously told about challenges with a lack of crew on several of these ferry routes. Over 200 canceled departures in the summer of 2022 meant that NHO asked the government to look at a ferry-free alternative. – When we have personnel shortages like now, bad weather or technical problems, Norway is divided in two. It is something we do not accept anywhere else in the country, said director of NHO Nordland, Daniel Bjarmann-Simonsen. In 2012, the Norwegian Public Roads Administration investigated both the tunnel and the bridge over the Tysfjorden. The costs were then calculated at around NOK 8–12 billion. The preferred solution then is to continue with ferries. The result of a concept selection investigation from 2012: It will cost NOK 7.8 billion to build an undersea tunnel from Bogenes to Skarberget. Three routes for the bridge were also investigated, these at NOK 11.7 billion each. The Swedish Road Administration, on the other hand, ranked the solution with 24-hour ferry operation (36 departures a day) as the best solution. Investments of NOK 4.4 billion were outlined there with the current ferry connection Bognes – Skarberget, and NOK 4.7 billion with the shortened connection. Since the investigation in 2012, the Norwegian Public Roads Administration has invested NOK 300 million in making all four ferry berths (Bognes, Skarberget, Drag, Kjøpsvik) ready to receive and operate electric ferries.
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Must upgrade the road network for 100 billion – news Nordland
