– I don’t think anything of them ignoring the sign and driving on. One thing is safety. But I would like to think that it seems quite frightening to those who sit on the bus and experience that a sign is scraping across the top of the bus. Project manager Trond Ingve Mølstre in the Norwegian Public Roads Administration does not like what he sees in the video from news. Because it is not the first time that large vehicles have ignored the maximum height to drive over the bridge that connects Haugesund and Karmøy. The sign that warns how high the vehicle can be to drive over the Karmsund bridge scrapes the roof of the bus when it drives under. Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news Twice, news has filmed buses full of cruise tourists driving over the Karmsund bridge, even though the buses are higher than the maximum height of four metres. Laying down The buses are owned by the company Stromma, which runs Hop-on-hop-off buses in Bergen, Geiranger, Stavanger, Oslo, Ålesund, Olden and Haugesund. It is not the first time the bus company has had problems. Read more here CEO Ole Asgeir Madland lies flat when he sees the video from news. – I think it’s absolutely terrible. We should not behave like that. CEO of the bus company Stromma, Ole Asgeir Madland Photo: Stromma – How can this happen? – For me, it is a bit incomprehensible. It is my responsibility that we follow all laws and regulations. We try to have good routines for that. But in this case it has been missed somewhere. I can’t help but regret it. The company has four buses that transport tourists in Haugesund and Karmøy. Two of the buses are over four metres. Only after news documented that the buses over four meters were driving over the Karmsund bridge, were they removed from the route that goes to Karmøy. Now the company wants to check that all the buses they have in Norway are within the height restrictions where they run. – We are going to go through all the buses we have to be absolutely sure that we drive legally everywhere. Driving over the yellow strip An average of 18,000 vehicles drive over the Karmsund bridge every day. Some of the vehicles are too high for what the bridge was built for. It shows clearly in the bridge construction. There is a lot of damage to the bridge structure from vehicles that have been too high. Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news – What we have seen is that when vehicles have come across the bridge construction, parts fall off which can again hit cars, cyclists or pedestrians. It creates dangerous situations, says Mølstre. Project manager in the Norwegian Public Roads Administration Trond Ingve Mølstre Photo: Gisle Jørgensen / news Other drivers are aware that the vehicle is too high and lie over the center strip because the bridge structure is higher in the middle. – If two buses meet then, we know how it can go. There are also passenger cars that are close to the yellow strip. If they meet a wagon train or a bus moving on their left side, it will be dangerous for them. The Karmsund bridge dates from the 1950s, and is scheduled to be replaced at some point. In Stromma, they will now review their routines to prevent this from happening again – We must be even more careful and have control over what we do, says Madland. – We have rules and regulations in road traffic to safeguard safety and ensure that all traffic can take place in a good way. It is good that the National Roads Administration looks after, and does not like, this situation, because neither do we. Do you want tips on where you can travel cheaply on holiday? Read more here Published 28.06.2024, at 06.31
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Tourist buses drove illegally over the Karmsund bridge – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
