Norway's tunnel improvements

Tougher legislation on tunnel safety means that Norway will have to invest heavily in upgrading underground road links.
March 2, 2012 Read time: 1 min
Tougher legislation on tunnel safety means that Norway will have to invest heavily in upgrading underground road links. Many of the country's existing road tunnels were built in the 1980s and 1990s and no longer meet the latest European requirements on road tunnels, introduced after two disasters that caused major fatalities in Switzerland and Austria. A new study suggests that the country's road tunnels may require up to €890 million to meet the current requirements. The Norwegian road authority's western division says that it will need to spend some €496 million at the end of 2011, a substantial increase from the €147 million spent in 2006. Norway has 1,050 tunnels in its total road network and the cost of the upgrades required will be revealed shortly in a detailed report being produced by the road authority, 1208 Statens Vegvesen. Although Norway and Switzerland are not in the EC, the countries do agree on certain legislation such as road safety with 3287 EU member nations.
Road Structures

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Norwegian Public Roads Administration’s €10bn for roads and tunnels
    September 24, 2013
    The Norwegian Public Roads Administration (Statens vegvesen) plans to invest €10 billion (NOK 80 billion) in road building and tunnel upgrades from 2014-17, according to its new investment plan for the period. A further another €2.87 billion (NOK 23 billion) will be spent on pedestrian and cyclist safety measures. Veidekke, a Norwegian construction company, forecasts 2-3% annual growth in the Norwegian construction market in 2014, but with a flattening out of housing construction. It forecasts Sweden
    Read More
  • Norway’s Blakkesrud Bridge to remain closed
    November 24, 2022
    The wooden bridge, which has undergone inspection, is one of a dozen or so wooden bridges closed after the collapse of the Tretten Bridge in August.
    Read More
  • Australia's huge transport investment
    February 29, 2012
    The Australian Government is allocating additional funding to renew its infrastructure and to improve transport in the major cities work in its 2011-12 budget.
    Read More
  • Tunnel inspections reveal safety compliance need
    May 9, 2012
    Results show the state of Europe's tunnel infrastructure at its 'most sublime and most depressing quality' as Patrick Smith reports. EuroTAP [European Tunnel Assessment Programme] 2010 has unveiled the results of inspections conducted earlier this year in 26 major tunnels in 13 European countries. The on site inspections, carried out between 12 April and 20 May, 2010, are said to indicate that an "alarming number of operational tunnels across Europe will not be ready to comply with EU tunnel safety rules wh
    Read More

Highlighted Content