Øresund Bridge – linking Sweden & Denmark

March 12, 2009

Oresun Bridge

The Øresund Bridge (locally called Øresundsbron) is the bridge that connects Øresund in Denmark with Skane, Sweden, in a total length of just over 10 miles (16,4 km). This is the road connection between the metropolitan areas of Copenhagen and Malmö. The international European route E20 runs across the bridge and through the tunnel via the two lane motorway (a 4-lane road carrying 6 million vehicles per year), as does the Öresund Railway Line (two train tracks carrying about 8 million people each year). Due to the Schengen Agreement, there are no passport or customs controls.

The Oresund Bridge now carries more than 60,000 travelers daily – amongst them both local commuters and visitors. In 1991, the governments of Denmark and Sweden agreed on constructing this massive project, and construction began in 1995. While the last section was constructed on 14 August 1999, the Oresund Bridge was officially opened on July 1, 2000.

Building the Oresund bridge included construction of a bridge, a tunnel (2.5 miles long / 4 km) and a new island where travelers go from tunnel-level (on the Danish side) to the level of the bridge.

The public transport by rail is operated jointly by the Swedish Skånetrafiken and the Danish Danske Statsbaner. A series of new dual-voltage trains were developed which link the Copenhagen area with Malmö and Southern Sweden as far as Gothenburg and Kalmar on selected departures. The bridge is also served by X2000 trains from Stockholm. Copenhagen Airport at Kastrup is served by its own train station close to the western bridgehead. Trains operate every 20 minutes over the crossing and once an hour during the night.

Oresund Bridge Toll:
In February 2009, the toll for driving the fixed link was as follows (one way trip without discount) in Danish kroner (DKK), Swedish kronor (SEK) and euro (EUR):

Vehicle	DKK¹	SEK²	EUR³
Motorcycle	150	190	21
Standard car	275	345	38
Motorhome/car+caravan	550	690	75
Minibus (6-9 metres)	550	690	75
Bus (longer than 9 metres)	1145	1430	157
Lorry/truck (9-20 metres)	795	995	109
Lorry/truck (over 20 metres)	1190	1490	163
Train ticket ⁴	78	98

Source: Wikipedia

¹ – Øresundsbron – kontantpriser (Danish)
² – Øresundsbron – kontantpriser (Swedish)
³ – Øresund Bridge – cash prices (English)
⁴ – http://www.oresundstag.se

Note that the Swedish prices are, according to media, likely to be raised soon after February 2009, because of a change in the exchange rate (to about DKK 0:70), making the Swedish prices lower than the Danish. The toll for driving across the Oresund bridge is paid at the toll station on the Swedish side. They accept both cash and credit cards. Check the Bridge Traffic Status & Toll information online.

For a good choice of hotels with discount prices, visit Hotel Reservation in Malmo for more information.

Official Website
Information & Bookings [German, English]