Latest news with #Jon-IvarNygård
Local Norway
21-05-2025
- Automotive
- Local Norway
Loophole that allows foreign vehicles in Norway to dodge tolls to close
A hold-up relating to an EU directive that allowed foreign-registered vehicles to avoid paying tolls in Norway has been resolved, meaning more foreign drivers will have to pay up. The hold-up meant that Norway couldn't access foreign vehicle registers, meaning charges for using toll roads and parking tickets couldn't be forwarded onto tourists and the owners of vehicles registered abroad. Transport Minister Jon-Ivar Nygård had previously expressed his frustration that Norway was unable to collect from a large number of foreign vehicles. 'It is very frustrating that we cannot collect this from foreign motorists. Both because we are not receiving the money and in view of the inequality towards those who pay,' he told the Norwegian newspaper VG earlier this year. However, the hold-up was resolved after Liechtenstein approved an EU directive that allows access to vehicle data across borders when it comes to road traffic offences and tolls. This means toll and parking firms will be able to send parking fines and bills for toll payment from motorists with vehicles registered in countries that had opted out of data sharing during the hold-up. Norwegian newspaper VG had previously reported that tolls firms were only able to collect 230 million of the 416 million kroner owed by foreign drivers in 2023. Advertisement Meanwhile, Oslo has seen an explosive increase in drivers working for courier delivery services like Foodora and Wolt flouting the rules and racking up large bills in unpaid tolls and parking fines due to having a foreign-registered vehicle. Foreign drivers who have paid tolls on Norwegian roads have either done so at toll booths or by signing up to the Euro Parking Collection . The regional newspaper Stavanger Aftenblad reported that the loophole should close one month after Liechtenstein has notified that its reservations over the directive have been lifted .
Yahoo
04-03-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Norway to ban petrol cars from ‘zero emission zones'
Norway will ban petrol cars from net zero zones under plans to encourage sales of electric vans and trucks. Jon-Ivar Nygård, the country's transport minister, said the Norwegian government planned to push through laws letting cities establish areas where only electric and hydrogen vehicles can drive. Norway is the world's most enthusiastic electric car market, with 96pc of new vehicles registered last month being battery-powered. However, they still make up less than a third of all existing vehicles on the road. Mr Nygård said electrification in goods and commercial transport 'has not progressed as far as for passenger cars'. Seven in 10 vans sold in Norway are powered by diesel fuel. The government has asked Norway's Public Roads Administration to put forward laws for consultation that would allow cities to establish 'zero emission zones' as soon as possible. Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim have requested new powers to be able to introduce the zones. It comes as the Norwegian capital pushes ahead with a programme to gradually shift away from motor vehicles, called 'car-free liveability'. This includes removing hundreds of parking spaces, while Oslo has said it wants to ban petrol vehicles as soon as this year. The new rules outlined by the government may allow cities to make exceptions for passenger cars. However, opposition parties have criticised the Labour government's plans, claiming they would make people's lives more difficult. Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, of the Centre Party, told Norwegian broadcaster NRK he was concerned that people with petrol or diesel cars would be 'shut out'. The Progress Party also criticised the moves as tokenism. Cities in the UK have trialled small zero emission or ultra low emission areas, although these are typically confined to a handful of streets. Oxford introduced a zero emission zone on nine streets in 2022, which is expected to have handed out £1.8m in fines by the time the trial ends next year. It plans to expand the zone to cover most of the city centre in the 2026/27 financial year. Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, previously proposed introducing a zero emission zone in the UK capital by 2025. However, he later scrapped the plan to focus on a 2030 net zero target. Some London boroughs have made certain streets ultra low emission zones, where only electric and the least-polluting hybrid cars can travel during peak hours, with exceptions for residents and emergency vehicles. Meanwhile, several European cities including Paris and Amsterdam have said petrol cars will be banned from 2030. Despite Norway becoming rich on oil production, electric vehicle sales in the country have boomed thanks to heavy tax incentives and discounts on toll roads and parking. The main purchasers of petrol cars are car rental companies, since many tourists are still reluctant to embrace them. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
04-03-2025
- Automotive
- Telegraph
Norway to ban petrol cars from ‘zero emission zones'
Norway will ban petrol cars from net zero zones under plans to encourage sales of electric vans and trucks. Jon-Ivar Nygård, the country's transport minister, said the Norwegian government planned to push through laws letting cities establish areas where only electric and hydrogen vehicles can drive. Norway is the world's most enthusiastic electric car market, with 96pc of new vehicles registered last month being battery-powered. However, they still make up less than a third of all existing vehicles on the road. Mr Nygård said electrification in goods and commercial transport 'has not progressed as far as for passenger cars'. Seven in 10 vans sold in Norway are powered by diesel fuel. The government has asked Norway's Public Roads Administration to put forward laws for consultation that would allow cities to establish 'zero emission zones' as soon as possible. Oslo, Bergen and Trondheim have requested new powers to be able to introduce the zones. It comes as the Norwegian capital pushes ahead with a programme to gradually shift away from motor vehicles, called 'car-free liveability'. This includes removing hundreds of parking spaces, while Oslo has said it wants to ban petrol vehicles as soon as this year. The new rules outlined by the government may allow cities to make exceptions for passenger cars. Petrol and diesel drivers risk being 'shut out' However, opposition parties have criticised the Labour government's plans, claiming they would make people's lives more difficult. Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, of the Centre Party, told Norwegian broadcaster NRK he was concerned that people with petrol or diesel cars would be 'shut out'. The Progress Party also criticised the moves as tokenism. Cities in the UK have trialled small zero emission or ultra low emission areas, although these are typically confined to a handful of streets. Oxford introduced a zero emission zone on nine streets in 2022, which is expected to have handed out £1.8m in fines by the time the trial ends next year. It plans to expand the zone to cover most of the city centre in the 2026/27 financial year. Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, previously proposed introducing a zero emission zone in the UK capital by 2025. However, he later scrapped the plan to focus on a 2030 net zero target. Some London boroughs have made certain streets ultra low emission zones, where only electric and the least-polluting hybrid cars can travel during peak hours, with exceptions for residents and emergency vehicles. Meanwhile, several European cities including Paris and Amsterdam have said petrol cars will be banned from 2030. Despite Norway becoming rich on oil production, electric vehicle sales in the country have boomed thanks to heavy tax incentives and discounts on toll roads and parking. The main purchasers of petrol cars are car rental companies, since many tourists are still reluctant to embrace them.
Local Norway
13-02-2025
- Business
- Local Norway
Norway gives green light to controversial train firm merger
The merger process was supposed to begin at the turn of the year, but it was held up by the Norwegian Competition Authority, which ruled on Wednesday that there was no basis to halt Flytoget from becoming a subsidiary of state-owned Vy. 'After an overall assessment of the case, we have concluded that there is insufficient evidence that the merger significantly impedes effective competition and that there is, therefore, no basis for intervention,' Vegard Aandal-Nilsen from the Norwegian competition authority said. The watchdog looked into the merger as Vy and Flytoget are the only rail firms offering services between Drammen and Oslo Airport. As a result, the authorities were concerned that the lack of competition would lead to increased prices and worsened service. A completion date of 2028 has been set for the merging of the two state-owned train firms. When the merger was proposed last year, transport minister Jon-Ivar Nygård said passengers would eventually be able to use tickets across the same services. Under current rules, travellers with Vy cannot use their tickets on Flytoget services and vice versa, even though both companies stop at several of the same stops and use the same lines. Tickets for Vy's services from Oslo to the airport are currently around 100 kroner cheaper than Flytoget's and can be bought via the Ruter transport app, but these services also take around 10 minutes longer to get to the airport from the city centre. Norway's government has argued that merging the two firms would increase capacity for trains in and out of Oslo without building new infrastructure. However, union officials working in Flytoget, the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise, and opposition parties such as the Conservative Party and the Progress Party have been critical of the merger.
