Three of the new toll plazas set to open around the Stavanger area on Monday were out of order, following severe vandalism during the weekend. Opposition to new and much higher tolls from October 1 has been strong, and police reported a “systematic and organized” pattern to the vandalism that came just a day before the tolls were to start being charged.
“This is hardly coincidental,” Brit Randulff, operations leader for the Sørvest Police District, told newspaper Stavanger Aftenblad. In all three cases, a panel on the side of the automatic toll portals was ripped open, and the network cables inside burned.
The leader of the organized uproar against the new road tolls condemned the vandalism and claimed he had no idea who was behind it. The extra costs of repairing the toll plazas will simply be passed on to motorists paying the tolls, which are meant to finance both road and cycling lane improvements.
newsinenglish.no staff
