Transport and Driving in Norway
Getting to, from and around Norway is smooth and easy, unless a snowstorm (or a cloud of volcanic ash from Iceland) causes delays. Regular flights service Norway and its surrounding areas. SAS, Norwegian Air, Wideroe and Ryanair are the four main airlines serving the country, besides several charter companies. Many international airlines fly into Norway as well.
The train system is very efficient and covers most of the country, as do various bus and ferry lines.
Since so much of Norway is located on the coast, ferries are sometimes the fastest form of transportation. The Hurtigruten follows the entire coastline from north to south, and is good for a touristic and leisurely look at the country. From Oslo, regular ferries will take you to Denmark, Sweden, and Germany. There are also ferry lines from the south of Norway to the UK.
Norwegian cities have excellent public transportation, and the options are varied. There are reliable bus, metro and tram routes, that run regularly and take you wherever you need to go in the larger cities. Buses and trams depart every 5, 10 or 15 minutes depending on the time of day and route. Outside of normal hours, they leave every 20 or 30 minutes within the city limits.
Longer-distance trains and buses have their own schedules. Transportation schedules are easy to find online for each city, and all train information can be accessed online. Public transportation is costly, but there are good and reasonable options for long-term usage, that cover several forms of transportation.
Major roads in Norway are good, but once you leave the south, sparsely populated areas and rough, mountainous terrain means that major roads are few, and often only consist of two lanes when there at all. On weekends and holidays, these roads back up with traffic for hours, so it’s good to plan for delays. Norwegians drive on the right-hand side of the road.
You can use your home country licence for a year before exchanging it for a Norwegian licence. When you exchange your foreign driving licence, it must be sent in to the Department of Motor Vehicles (Vegvesen), with an application for exchange. You will be required to take a driving test as well, which requires substantial fees.
If for some reason you don’t already drive, and are thinking of getting your driver’s licence in Norway, don’t. With the excellent public transportation, there is no real need to own or drive a car unless you have children. If you are still intent on doing it, expect to spend a lot of time and money. Besides learning basic driving skills, you must learn to drive on ice and to handle snowy conditions. It is not unusual to pay more than 20,000 NOK for driving lessons before finally taking the driving test, which also entails several high fees.
Because of all the rules and requirements, it’s a good idea to go to the DMV (Vegvesen) in person, and to get someone to explain what is required. To get an idea of the complexity involved in a skill that most find basic, just have a look at the two documents at the bottom of this page.
Regulations on cars and driving are very strict. Fines are based on your salary (yes, they have this information); so the richer you are, the sorrier you’ll be for speeding. Norway has a zero tolerance policy for drinking and driving; and consequently, has strict laws including exorbitant fines and prison sentences.
Since January 1, 2004, Norwegian authorities have used a points system (prikkbelastning) to handle traffic offenders. Two points will be issued for most violations, except for in the smallest speeding cases. If eight points or more are issued during a three-year period, the driving licence is temporarily revoked, usually for six months. Each point is deleted when three years have passed since the violation took place. When the driving privileges are restored after the six-month ban, the points which caused the suspension, are deleted.
The train system is very efficient and covers most of the country, as do various bus and ferry lines. Since so much of Norway is located on the coast, ferries are sometimes the fastest form of transportation. The Hurtigruten follows the entire coastline from north to south, and is good for a touristic and leisurely look at the country. From Oslo, regular ferries will take you to Denmark, Sweden, and Germany. There are also ferry lines from the south of Norway to the UK.
Public Transport
Norwegian cities have excellent public transportation, and the options are varied. There are reliable bus, metro and tram routes, that run regularly and take you wherever you need to go in the larger cities. Buses and trams depart every 5, 10 or 15 minutes depending on the time of day and route. Outside of normal hours, they leave every 20 or 30 minutes within the city limits.
Longer-distance trains and buses have their own schedules. Transportation schedules are easy to find online for each city, and all train information can be accessed online. Public transportation is costly, but there are good and reasonable options for long-term usage, that cover several forms of transportation.
Driving
Road conditions
Major roads in Norway are good, but once you leave the south, sparsely populated areas and rough, mountainous terrain means that major roads are few, and often only consist of two lanes when there at all. On weekends and holidays, these roads back up with traffic for hours, so it’s good to plan for delays. Norwegians drive on the right-hand side of the road.
Driver's license
You can use your home country licence for a year before exchanging it for a Norwegian licence. When you exchange your foreign driving licence, it must be sent in to the Department of Motor Vehicles (Vegvesen), with an application for exchange. You will be required to take a driving test as well, which requires substantial fees.
If for some reason you don’t already drive, and are thinking of getting your driver’s licence in Norway, don’t. With the excellent public transportation, there is no real need to own or drive a car unless you have children. If you are still intent on doing it, expect to spend a lot of time and money. Besides learning basic driving skills, you must learn to drive on ice and to handle snowy conditions. It is not unusual to pay more than 20,000 NOK for driving lessons before finally taking the driving test, which also entails several high fees.
Because of all the rules and requirements, it’s a good idea to go to the DMV (Vegvesen) in person, and to get someone to explain what is required. To get an idea of the complexity involved in a skill that most find basic, just have a look at the two documents at the bottom of this page.
Fines and penalties
Regulations on cars and driving are very strict. Fines are based on your salary (yes, they have this information); so the richer you are, the sorrier you’ll be for speeding. Norway has a zero tolerance policy for drinking and driving; and consequently, has strict laws including exorbitant fines and prison sentences.
Since January 1, 2004, Norwegian authorities have used a points system (prikkbelastning) to handle traffic offenders. Two points will be issued for most violations, except for in the smallest speeding cases. If eight points or more are issued during a three-year period, the driving licence is temporarily revoked, usually for six months. Each point is deleted when three years have passed since the violation took place. When the driving privileges are restored after the six-month ban, the points which caused the suspension, are deleted.
