Easter journey home: – Many accidents on Easter transport

– There is a lot of traffic, and there is a line down from the mountains and a little bit from southern Norway, says traffic operator Marita Pakebo, from Vegtrafiksentralen south to Dagbladet.

At many places, there are slow-moving queues and queues are expected to continue throughout the evening.

– We encourage people to follow the traffic, pay attention and not stress, says Pakebo.

At 22.50 there are still significant delays on several major roads. According to Southern Road Transport Center, this is the situation.

• Rv7: Gol-Ørgenvika: approx 30 minutes.
• E16: Hønefoss-Sandvika: approx. 1 hour.
• E18: Moheim-Langangen in Porsgrunn: approx. 25 minutes.
• At Hemdunellen in Dansberg: approx. 25 minutes.
• E134 Kongsberg-Drammen approx 30 minutes.
• E134 Sauland-Notodden approx 40 minutes.

At 17.05 the E16 Hønefoss – Sandvika was over an hour late. This corresponds to 22.55.

A car fire on the E134 at Hardanger in Westland caused problems for Easter traffic on Sunday afternoon.

No one was injured.

The E6 at Verdel is closed northbound at 21.25 due to a stop. The stop took place north of Verdel.

– The car is on the towpath, Vegtrafiksentralen writes in the middle.

It has been announced that the road has been opened for traffic at 22.56.

Air ambulance on site

A car was reportedly involved in a traffic accident in Ål. At 20:48, police announced on Twitter that a car had been driven into a house.

There were two people inside the car when the accident happened.

Both get out of the car and are attended to by health workers. It is considered a major accident.

– One person is taken to hospital by air ambulance. The current sequence of events is unknown. The site is being mapped, the Sør-East Police District writes on Twitter at 9.16pm.

There should not have been an accident related to Easter traffic.

– This should be treated as an isolated incident, Øyvind Hammervold, operations manager on duty at the Sør-East police district, told Dagbladet.

The road is currently closed in both directions.

Problems with E16

At 16.55 the Road Transport Center writes on Twitter that several motorists have asked the police for help directing traffic on Trenkeride.

– They write that neither the police nor the National Road Administration regulate traffic here, but road users are encouraged to contribute to the smooth running of traffic.

The National Roads Administration’s transport operator, Christer Ede, insists B.A This is out of the question with possible routing. He believes that knitting is uncomplicated.

– Road users don’t see like we do. Motorists from Quamskogan have the right of way, and then those from Voss think they will stand still, he says, adding:

– but we note that the roundabout is more finely woven and there is more traffic from E16 than from Kvamskogen, which causes long queues on E16.

At 19.20 a car is reported to have partially gone off the road on the E16 near Wagstall in the direction of Bergen.

– Viking is on the way to save the car, Vegtrafiksentralen Vest writes on Twitter.

At 20.49 the car was recovered by Viking.

Many mines were closed

At 17.55, Norwegian Road Traffic Center West reports on Twitter that the Byfjord tunnel on the E39 between Harestad and Sogn is closed.

The reason is that the car is towing.

At 18.10, the Swedish Road Transport Agency writes that the tunnel has reopened for free traffic.

A vehicle is parked in Brakernestanel in Drammen, eastern Norway. So the tunnel from Kula to Brakeroya is closed.

Vegtrafikksentralen Vest tweeted at 21:51 that an ice fall blocked traffic in the Årøytunnel in Sogndal.

– Temporarily closed due to snow. The contractor is on the way.

Another snowfall occurred at 22.30 on the E6 just before the Eidsvoll tunnel in the direction of Oslo.

The Israzet region has fallen on the right track.

– Police and contractor on the way.

The right lane is closed and traffic is moving in the left lane.

A storm is expected

With glorious weather in many places on Easter Sunday, many are expected to be delayed in returning home. However, on Monday, storms are expected in the mountains and there are clear calls for meteorologists and the Road Transport Centre.

On the E134 in Haugelifjell, according to the Norwegian Road Administration, road conditions should be of poor quality.

– Mud and wet alternative. They write on Twitter that at 20:00 minus one degree, light wind and light snow.

Especially the people of southern state should be cautious about the expected storm. Meteorologists have issued a yellow warning for heavy snow in the southern hills.

– In the first instance, the danger warnings apply mainly to mountain passes between east and west, meteorologist Martin Granerod tells Talkbladet.

The fire brigade is called: – Perfect storm

Returning on these roads may make it difficult to get home on Monday.

Wind speeds will increase, and light to strong winds will occur in exposed areas. Combined with snow, it can cause difficult visibility.

– So Granerod recommends that those in high mountains, or over mountain passes, plan their trip home in advance if they plan to drive on Monday.

We do not recommend peak travel

Hiking over the mountains in southern Norway on Easter Monday is also not recommended.

– Don’t do it on Monday. Strong winds blow on higher peaks.

Weather can also cause problems on roads in low mountain areas.

– Snow is expected above 600-700 meters there, then it will turn to rain. Snow and slippery conditions may occur. Some roads are already covered with snow, and as the rainfall turns to milder weather, snow and ice will turn into snow and ice at places, the meteorologist said.

– So when should people think about a return trip?

– You should consider it yourself. But if you get out and drive on Monday, conditions will be better before you even start. If you’re going up a high mountain, it’s a good idea to check the weather and forecasts and plan to take more time than you would on a good weather day.

May be closed

It should also be noted that mountain passes can be closed at short notice, meteorologists write in the warning.

– History shows that mountain passes have challenges in weather like this. So you can see how strong the wind can be. Vegtrafiksentralen decides whether the road will be opened or not.

Anne Hårstad, a transport operator at Vegtrafikksentralen öst, tells Dagbladet that it is worthwhile returning home today or Tuesday due to the expected weather.

– When are the most cars expected on the roads?

– Good weather is expected today, so if you want to stand in line, you will have to wait until the evening. When the weather is nice, people tend to wait as long as possible. Later in the evening there will be queues, says Harstad.

However, after the corona pandemic and the trend of home offices, it has become more difficult to predict, he says.

– But people should at least try to drive when the weather isn’t bad if they want good speed on the roads. Snow and ice can make driving very difficult.

Brilliant Easter weather – then it turns out

Sun in the north, rain in the south

Although southern Norway’s good weather days are almost over at this time, there will be a change in weather further north.

– For northern Norway, it has been cloudy and raining in recent days. And while it’s bad in the south, it’s usually better in the north, meteorologist Granerod says.

In northern Norway, the sunshine is longer now, which will gradually come into effect throughout the day.

– They can expect some good days in the week. Here in the south it will continue with gray weather and rain. So we’ll see how it goes over the weekend, where the weatherman says it’s very uncertain.