Vigra Fixed Link
The Vigra Fixed Link (
History
The two first tunnels, Ellingsøy and Valderøy, and the Giske Bridge were opened by
The project cost 780 million kr, all of which was financed by debt taken up by the partially publicly owned company Ålesund og Giske Tunnel- og Brusamband AS. The fixed link received a concession to collect tolls for 22 years. The project was built in a period with much optimism, and the banks were more than willing to lend large sums for the project. However, by the time the project was finished, the interest rate had increased to 16.5%, and the toll company could not pay the interest, let alone the
When the tolls were removed on 25 October 2009, drivers had paid 1.37 billion kr, while the company still had 1.38 billion kr in outstanding debt. As the tunnels are owned by the
References
- ^ a b Herskedal, Kjell (24 October 2009). "Gratis å kjøre Ålesundtunnelene fra søndag" (in Norwegian). Norwegian News Agency.