European route E39 is the designation of a north–south road in Norway and Denmark from Klett, just south of Trondheim, to Aalborg via Bergen, Stavanger and Kristiansand. In total, there are nine ferries, more than any other single road in Europe.
In Trondheim, there are connections to E6 and E14; in Ålesund, to E136, in Bergen to E16, in Haugesund, to E134, in Kristiansand to E18, and in Aalborg to E45.
Norwegian part
In Norway, the E39 is part of the country's national road system, with its development and maintenance falling under the jurisdiction of the public roads administration.National Public Roads Administration of Norway, website The E39 is mostly a two-lane undivided road, and only relatively short sections near Stavanger, Trondheim, and Bergen are motorways or semi-motorways.
Trøndelag county Trondheim Municipality towards Oslo and Trondheim Klett junction Melhus Municipality Semi-motorway Øysand-Thamshavn/Orkanger (22 km) Skaun Municipality Brekk Tunnel () Mannsfjell Tunnel () Viggja Tunnel () Skaun Storsand Tunnel () Orkland Municipality Orkanger towards Surnadal Municipality Gagnåsvatnet towards Hitra Municipality and Frøya Municipality Heim Municipality Vinjeøra towards Kyrksæterøra Valsøy Bridge () Betna towards Surnadal Municipality Ferry from Halsa to Kanestraum in Tingvoll (20 minutes, fee)
Møre og Romsdal county
Tingvoll Municipality towards Oppdal Municipality Bergsøysund Bridge () Gjemnes Municipality towards Kristiansund Municipality Gjemnessund Bridge ( length, span)
Molde Municipality towards Sunndalsøra Semi-motorway Hjelset - Lønset (9 km) Hjelset toll station ←Molde Airport, Årø →Eide, Elnesvågen → Fannefjordstunnelen direction Åndalsnes Ferry from Molde to Vestnes (35 minutes, 2 departures per hour, fee) Vestnes Municipality at Skorgenes, jointly with E39 until Spjelkavik Ålesund Municipality Sjøholt → Linge ferry dock and Geiranger at Spjelkavika, jointly with E39 from Skorgenes at Tresfjord
Sula Municipality towards Hareid Municipality Ferry from Solavågen to Festøya in Ørsta (20 minutes, 2 departures per hour, fee) Ørsta Municipality Ørsta Volda Municipality Furene → Eiksund tunnel to Volda-Folkestad Rotsethorn Tunnel () Hjartåberg Tunnel () Fyrdsberg Tunnel () Eidsnakk Tunnel () Kviven Tunnel () to Hellesylt and Stranda Municipality
Vestland county
Stad Municipality Kongenestunnelen (1120 m) and Breisvortunnelen (1380 m) at Leivdøla bridge, jointly with E39 until Nordfjordeid to Folkestad-Volda at Nordfjordeid to Måløy Lotetunnelen Gloppen Municipality Ferry from Lote to Anda (10 min, 1–2 departures per hour, fee)
Kleberget tunnel under the Sandane Airport runway at Sandane at Byrkjelo Sunnfjord Municipality jointly with E39 from Skei to Førde at Moskog to Balestrand over Gaularfjellet Toll into Førde to Førde hospital Førde Toll into Førde at Espeland to Førde airport at Sande to Dale and Askvoll westbound or to Gaularfjellet eastbound Høyanger Municipality at Vadheim Bogstunnelen Noreviktunnelen Lavik ferry from Lavik to Ytre Oppedal (20 min, 1–2 departures per hour, fee) Gulen Municipality Ytre Oppedal Skrikebergtunnelen Jernfjelltunnelen Masfjorden Municipality Matreberg Tunnel Masfjord Tunnel Alver Municipality Eikefet Tunnel 3 toll stations at Mundalsberget, Flatøy and Åsane Mundalsberg Tunnel at Knarvik Hagelsund Bridge
to Flatøy and Holsnøy Nordhordland Bridge (Nordhordlandsbrua)
Bergen Municipality at Nyborg towards Oslo Motorway Vågsbotn – Eidsvåg (5 km) Fløyfjellstunnelen (two parallel tunnels, 3195 and 3825 m each) Bergen in Bergen towards midtown, and towards Øygarden Municipality 3 Toll stations at Sandviken, Nygårdsbroen and Fjøsangerveien Semi-motorway Fjøsanger - Hop (2 km) Hop (14 km) Råtunnelen (two parallel tunnels, 2160 m each) to Bergen Airport, Flesland Lyshorntunnelen (two parallel tunnels, each) Bjørnafjorden Municipality
Toll station at Endelausmarka
Skogafjellstunnelen (two parallel tunnels, 1510 m each) Svegatjørn Ferry from Halhjem to Sandvikvåg (40 min, 3 departures per hour, fee) Fitjar Municipality to Fitjar Stord Municipality Stordabrua/Stord Bridge () Bømlafjordtunnelen/Bømlafjord Tunnel (; below sea level) Sveio Municipality
Rogaland county Tysvær Municipality Liland toll station at Aksdal, towards Haugesund and Drammen Bokn Municipality Ognasund Bridge (Ognasundbrua) () Ferry from Arsvågen to Mortavika (25 min, 3 departures per hour, fee) Stavanger Municipality Mastrafjordtunnelen () Byfjordtunnelen () Randaberg Municipality Stavanger Municipality Randabergveien toll station Motorway Tasta-Hove (19 km) Eiganes Tunnel (two parallel tunnels, each) towards Røldal using the Ryfylke Tunnel (14,500 m) towards Stavanger Airport, Sola Refsnesveien toll station
Sandnes Municipality Stokkamyra toll station towards Bryne Gjesdal Municipality Bjerkreim Municipality Eigersund Municipality towards Tonstad Lund Municipality
Agder County
Flekkefjord Municipality Austadtunnelen () at Flekkefjord towards Sokndal Municipality Kvinesdal Municipality Fedaheitunnelen () Fedafjorden Bridge ( length, span) Teistedalstunnelen () Vatlandtunnelen () Lyngdal Municipality Lindesnes Municipality Motorway Mandal junction – Grautheller junction (24 km) 2 toll stations at Skoieveien and Holbekstjønn Kristiansand Municipality Trysfjord Bridge () 3 toll stations at Lohnelier, Storemyr and Vesterveien Søgnetunnelen (two parallel tunnels, each) at Kristiansand towards Oslo towards Hirtshals, Denmark (2–3 hours, 2–5 departures/day, fee)
Domestic ferries The E39 ferries are operated by Fjord1 except the Volda-Folkestad and Festøya-Solavågen ferry, which are operated by Norled.
Domestic car ferries on the E39 are regarded as an integral part of national highways. Ferries operate according to a published timetable and standard prices for vehicles and passengers. The E39 includes the following ferry routes from North to South (approximate crossing time in minutes):Can Norway win the global race to build a 'floating tunnel'? CNN 29 January 2019
Halsa–Kanestraum 20 min. Molde–Vestnes 35 min. Solavågen–Festøya 20 min.
Anda–Lote 10 min. Lavik–Oppedal 20 min. Halhjem–Sandvikvåg 45 min. Arsvågen–Mortavika 25 min.
The Norwegian government plans to replace all the ferries on E39 in Norway with bridges and tunnels.3D-animation the Sognefjord This involves some of the longest proposed bridge spans.
History In 1786, a royal decision was made to establish a postal route between Bergen and Trondheim. From the establishment of mail in Norway in 1647 until then, all mail between those cities went through Oslo. To begin with, the route was for large parts usable only for walking and horse riding, but in the following decades it was rebuilt and became accessible to horse-drawn carriages. Additionally, several parts were only accessible by boat. The route was Bergen–Åsane–Hordvik–(boat over Salhusfjorden)–Isdal–Hundvin–Gulen–Rutledal–(boat over Sognefjorden)–Leirvik (Hyllestad)–Flekke–Dale–Bygstad–Førde–Jølster–Gloppen-(boat over Nordfjord)–Faleide (Stryn)–Hornindal–Hellesylt–Stranda–(boat along Storfjorden)–Sjøholt–Vestnes-(boat over Romsdalsfjorden)–Molde–Angvika–(boat over Tingvollfjorden)–Tingvoll–(boat over Halsafjorden)–Stangvik–Skei–Rindal–Orkanger–Trondheim. The 1786 decision also included a mail route between Stavanger and Bergen. In 1858, mail was rerouted to the newly established steamship line Bergen–Vadheim, and the mail route changed to Vadheim–Sande–Førde, in parts precisely along today's route.
Since 1990, a number of long bridges and tunnels have replaced four of the ferries. The bridges and tunnels are: Nordhordland Bridge (1994) Gjemnessund Bridge and Bergsøysund Bridge (1992) Stord Bridge and Bømlafjord Tunnel (2000) Kviven Tunnel and further tunnels (2012) Other large road projects include: Klett–Orkanger (2005) Orkanger–Høgkjølen (2015) Lote Tunnel (1966) Bogs Tunnel (2004) and the adjacent Norevik Tunnel (2012) Masfjord Tunnel and adjacent tunnels (1986–1995) Eikefet Tunnel (1980) Fløyfjell Tunnel (1989), motorway Lyshorn Tunnel (2022), motorway Mastrafjord Tunnel and Byfjord Tunnel (1992) Eiganes Tunnel, part of the Ryfylke Tunnel project for road 13 (2019) Søgne Tunnel (2022), motorway
The route Trondheim–Ålesund–Bergen–Stavanger–Kristiansand was named E39 in 2000. Kristiansund–Stavanger was earlier riksveg 1 (national highway 1, "coastal through-road") from 1992 and riksveg 14 before 1992. Stavanger–Kristiansand was part of E18, and Trondheim – Kristiansund was riksveg 65 and riksveg 71.
Future Rogfast, which will be the world's deepest and longest underwater road tunnel at long and deep, was started (first blasting) in 2018 and is expected to be opened in 2033. The entire route from Stavanger to Kristiansand is planned to be rebuilt into a four-lane motorway before 2035, with a total of remaining (as of 2021) to be built. Additionally, Norwegian authorities and private contractors have already prepared concrete construction plans that contemplate replacing every ferry link with a fixed connection. There are seven, but each presents a costly technical challenge as the fjords are wide and very deep, and have met public resistance.Apart from Rogfast, two projects have a time plan, although delayed: Hordfast (south of Bergen) is prioritised because it serves the highest number of ferry ships, five in operation, and second-most vehicle traffic after Rogfast, despite being probably the most technically challenging of all these crossings. A five-kilometre-long floating bridge over Bjørnafjorden is planned, a new world record, in a stormy area, with clearing for ship traffic below. And a suspension bridge over Langenuen with a span, one of the longest in the world. The total cost for Hordfast is estimated at 37 billion NOK ($US billion), with road tolls contributing around 400 NOK. Regulatory standards will be completed in 2023, and the construction is estimated to be completed in the 2030s. A crossing of Romsdalsfjord (Ålesund–Molde), having a undersea tunnel and a 2000-meter-long suspension bridge with a span. Its construction is scheduled to begin around 2030. Due to difficult terrain and technical challenges, the construction of the remaining four fjord crossings remains uncertain. Despite this, the realization of their construction has been actively studied. Sognefjorden: a 4 km-long floating bridge is considered. Nordfjorden: a 1.8 km-long suspension bridge with a 1.5 km span is considered. Sulafjorden and Vartdalsfjorden: a 4 km-long floating bridge plus a 2 km-long suspension bridge is considered. Halsafjorden: a 3 km-long floating bridge is considered.
Norway–Denmark ferry An international car ferry is operated by Color LineColor Line and by Fjord Line (seasonally).Fjord Line Kristiansand – Hirtshals 3 hours 15 minutes
Danish part
From Norway, E39 continues via a ferry from Kristiansand to Hirtshals, in northern Denmark. Ferries are run by Color Line and Fjord Line. The motorway goes from the south of Hirtshals to the north of Aalborg. The exits are: Aabyen 2 Hjørring N 3 Hjørring C 4 Hjørring S 5 Vrå 6 Brønderslev C 7 Brønderslev S | Store Vildmose 8 Tylstrup 9 Vestbjerg 10 Høvejen → Aalborg Airport Aalborg, Aarhus
References
External links UN Economic Commission for Europe: Overall Map of E-road Network (2007) European route E39