Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
track you down once you return to your home country (often as much as six months later)
and you'll be expected to pay both the toll and a penalty fee of Nkr300.
SPEED CAMERAS
The lethargy-inspiring national speed limits may seem laborious by your home standards,
but avoid the temptation to drive faster as they're taken very seriously. Mobile police units
lurk at the side of the roads. Watch for signs designating
Automatisk Trafikkontrol,
which
means that there's a speed camera ahead; these big and ugly grey boxes have no mercy at
all - you'll be nabbed for even 5km/h over the limit. Fines range from Nkr1000 to well over
Nkr10,000.
If you're in a rental car, the fine will be deducted from your credit card. If you're in a
foreign-registered vehicle, you may be tracked back to your home country.
Vehicle Ferries
While travelling along the scenic but mountainous, fjord-studded west coast may be spec-
tacular, it also requires numerous ferry crossings that can prove time-consuming and costly.
For a complete list of ferry schedules and fares, get hold of the
Rutebok for Norge,
a
phone-book-sized transport guide sold in bookshops and larger Narvesen kiosks.
Hitching
Hitching isn't entirely safe and we don't recommend it. Travellers who decide to hitch
should understand they're taking a potentially serious risk. People who choose to hitch will
be safer if they travel in pairs and let someone know where they're planning to go.
If you're determined to hitch, you'll find Norwegians generally friendly, and they under-
stand that not all foreigners enjoy an expense-account budget or earn Norwegian salaries.
Your chances of success are better on main highways, but you still may wait for hours in
bad weather. One approach is to ask for rides from truck drivers at ferry terminals and pet-
rol stations; that way, you'll normally have a place to keep warm and dry while you wait.
Local Transport
Bus
Nearly every town in Norway supports a network of local buses, which circulate around the
town centre and also connect it with outlying areas. In many smaller towns, the local bus
