Lunchbreaks halt harbour traffic

A fierce labour battle has created severe indigestion among maritime employers, harbour workers in Oslo and their trade unions over the workers’ longstanding tradition of taking meal breaks together.  The harbour comes to a standstill every day while workers head to the canteen, take out their sandwiches and enjoy what their employers are calling “the [...]

Deadly mass crash closed highway

UPDATED: Five cars and at least one truck were involved in a dramatic collision on the heavily trafficked E18 highway west of Oslo Thursday morning. One person was killed, several more were severely injured and the main artery into Oslo was closed in both directions. Police later arrested a man who fled the scene, suspecting that [...]

Overtime mediation averted strike

Norway’s labour federations LO and YS came to terms with national employers’ organization NHO at around 3am on Monday, after three hours of mediation in overtime that ultimately averted a major strike. Their agreement provides modest pay raises across the board, plus a special wage boost for lowest-paid union members. All parts involved claimed they [...]

Strike threat looms Monday

Ferries, flights, other forms of public transport, shipyards and even supplies of beer and soft drinks will be disrupted next week, if nearly 20,000 members of various unions around Norway are called out on strike. Bus service in the Oslo area, for example, will be halted from early Monday if mediation fails over the weekend. [...]

Burning brown cheese closes tunnel

A tunnel in Northern Norway is likely to remain closed for another few weeks because of a smoldering mound of  Norway’s ubiquitous sweet brown cheese, officials said Monday. The tunnel in Tysfjord, Nordland County, already has been closed for five days, since fire broke out on a truck that was transporting the cheese. The messy [...]

Electrical trouble halted trains

All train traffic through Oslo’s busy central station (Oslo S) ground to a halt Sunday afternoon because of a grounding problem in the station’s electrical system. The disruption delayed thousands of passengers traveling during the Christmas holiday rush. Traffic stood still for around a half-hour before service could begin to get back on track, according [...]

Tunnel fire disrupts train schedules

Tens of thousands of Oslo-area commuters had to find alternative ways of getting to work on Monday after a fire in the main railroad tunnel under Oslo forced its closure on Sunday. The fire also halted all train traffic through Oslo, disrupting service on both local and long-distance routes. “The consequences are quite dramatic because [...]

Public transport officials breathe sighs of relief

The train, bus and metro systems in and around the Oslo metropolitan area underwent their biggest route changes in several decades early this week, but officials could report few if any major problems. Commuters mostly got to their destinations and were being thanked for their patience and cooperation. “Today we have to thank our customers,” [...]

Challenges loom for commuters

More than 100,000 Norwegians are being warned that it may be challenging to get to and from work next week and just about anywhere else. Public transit systems in the southeastern portion of the country will undergo major route changes from December 9, while state meteorologists were forecasting snow at the same time. A deep [...]

Vandalism halts trains’ comeback

Another summer of major train service disruption in the Oslo area ended on Monday, when the rails re-opened on schedule after six weeks of repairs and improvements. One of the main lines north of Oslo, however, came to a screeching halt almost immediately because of vandalism that could have led to a fatal derailment. An early [...]

Airlines brace for more delays

Airlines serving Norwegian airports, especially the country’s main gateway at Gardermoen north of Oslo, were warning of another weekend of delays because of inadequate staffing among air traffic controllers. Norwegian Air is especially unhappy, after claiming it has lost millions on airport trouble in recent weeks. Norwegian isn’t alone, and representatives of other airlines including [...]

Driving costs shift into high gear

As the summer driving season sets in, comes news that the already-high costs of driving a car in Norway have accelerated in recent years. Higher fuel prices, higher fees and, not least, more tolls have all made car ownership and driving pricier than ever before. Newspaper Aftenposten headlined a recent summary of the costs of [...]

Tunnel trouble for transport minister

A hotly contested and expensive tunnel project in western Norway has dug up trouble for Transport Minister Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa, not least because it would run curiously close to her own home town. While some smelled pork barrel politics, she seemed to be digging in her heels. Newspaper VG reported Monday that it was Kleppa [...]

State goes digital, and drops car registration stickers

Vehicle owners will no longer be sent the small registration stickers they’ve received every year for the past two decades. State authorities have come up with other means of ensuring that car owners have paid their registration, fulfilled vehicle safety and operating requirements, and have valid insurance. Transport Minister Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa announced this week that [...]

Strong krone threatens hotels

Economic problems abroad combined with Norway’s strong currency, the krone, have left Norwegian hotel owners in outlying areas fearing that fewer tourists will be checking in this summer. They received some relief, however, from the postponement of new, protectionist rules that would restrict the foreign bus operators who drive tourists around in Norway. “There’s no [...]

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