Transport minister favours ferries over Kattegat Bridge
Opinion is still split on how to improve transport between the countries two largest cities The debate about whether to build a bridge over the Kattegat Sea linking Zealand and Jutland has flared up again with transport minister Lars Barfoed...
The debate about whether to build a bridge over the Kattegat Sea linking Zealand and Jutland has flared up again with transport minister Lars Barfoed announcing he favours expanding the existing ferry service.
Barfoed said traffic between Århus and Copenhagen could be improved by expanding the road between Copenhagen and the port city of Kalundborg, coupled with investing in high-speed ferries linking Kalundborg and Århus.
The minister, who in recent days has unveiled numerous proposals for major road construction projects, also proposed investments in improved port facilities at both ends of the ferry route.
Currently, traffic between the two regions must either pass over the island of Funen or use the existing high speed ferry service linking western Zealand with Århus, which covers 40km over the Kattegat Sea in about an hour.
Should an expanded ferry service prove insufficient, Barfoed said a bridge linking northern Funen and eastern Jutland; a span of about 20 kilometres would be less expensive and more feasible than a bridge linking Zealand and Jutland. Such a bridge was proposed in 2007 by the government’s Infrastructure Commission.
Barfoed was able to drum up support in parliament for an expanded ferry service, provided the option of a Kattegat Bridge remained available at a later date if necessary.
Regional politicians in Jutland, however, criticised the idea, pointing out that a bridge linking the two regions could also be used for high-speed rail between Copenhagen and Århus.
Parliament’s Socialist People’s Party also opposed the proposal to expand the ferry service, arguing that ferries would lead to increased air pollution and proposing a tunnel through the Kattegat instead.