An opinion poll carried out for news and Nordlys shows that the toll party has dropped a full 5.6 percentage points since the last municipal election. If this had been the election result, the party would have gone from four mandates to one in the municipal council. – They sailed into the national toll wind in 2019. That wave has subsided, says election researcher Jonas Stein at UiT Norway’s Arctic University. The group leader for the toll party, Jan Blomseth, nevertheless strongly believes that more people will vote for them when the collection of tolls starts. No to tolls in Tromsø received 8.7 per cent of the votes in the municipal elections in 2019. Photo: Vilde Kristine Malmo / news From the new year, Tromsø will go from 0 to 15 toll stations. This will lead to large expenses for people who use cars in the city. – When people start getting the bills, many will probably change their views. The people I speak to are adamantly against the tolls and will vote for us, says Blomseth. Source: InFact on behalf of news and newspaper Nordlys, August 2022 Have to spend NOK 2,000 more The Toll Party is going backwards the most of all, while the Progress Party is the survey’s big winner with a 6.4 percentage point lead. Election researcher Jonas Stein says it looks as if the FRP has regained its old position as an opponent of tolls. Election researcher Jonas Stein. Photo: André Bendixen / news – This will make a separate party such as the toll party superfluous, says Stein. He recalls the heyday in 2019 when the “People’s action no to tolls” had a support of almost 30 per cent in Bergen. Back then, the party took so many voters from both the Conservative Party and the Labor Party that at one point they were the largest party in the city. – The tolls are not up and running – literally. Then we will see what the long-term effects will be, says the election researcher. In several places on Tromsøya, the toll stations are under construction. Photo: Pål Hansen / news Lise Uteng Davidsen lives in Tromsø. For her, the parties’ stance on tolls will be decisive when she votes in the local elections next year. Lise Uteng Davidsen is concerned with tolls. Photo: Hanne Wilhelms / news – It will be very important to me. I will receive an expense of around NOK 2,000 a month, as will my husband, says Uteng Davidsen. – I live on one side of the city, but work on the other side, so taking two buses with changing buses in the morning is out of the question. Difficult choice Toll collection in Tromsø was actually supposed to start in October. Earlier this week, however, it became clear that the collection has been delayed until after the New Year. Veronica Brekk lives in Tromsø, and is not looking forward to the introduction of tolls. – I don’t think Tromsø is a city that is suitable for tolling. I also feel it will be a bit unfair in relation to where you live in the city, there will be a slightly skewed distribution. She still believes that it will not affect which party she will vote for in next year’s local elections. – There are a number of other matters that also come into play. It is an overall assessment. It’s difficult, I don’t really think any party meets all requirements. Veronica Brekk says no to tolls, but whether it will affect who gets her vote. Photo: Knut Anders Finnset / news The toll ring is a joint effort The money from the toll ring will go to better roads for both bicycles, motorists and public transport in the municipality. Nearly 40 per cent have little faith that they will get anything back for the tolls. It is Think Tromsø that is behind the transport project, and leader Veronica Wiik says that motorists are part of a team. – What motorists contribute as a share triggers funds from the state and is part of a joint venture between both municipality and county. It will lead to the realization of many important projects in the coming years, says Wiik. She encourages motorists to obtain an autopass agreement and chip in good time before the toll collection begins. With a chip, you have to pay a maximum of 80 passes a month, and you also get a 20 percent discount in the toll ring. If you drive to and from work during rush hour, and in addition cross the toll ring 16 times outside of work, the expenses come to NOK 1,382 a month.
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– The toll wind has subsided, says election researcher – news Troms and Finnmark
