Bergen Opts for Light Rail

Bergen, located on the western coast of Norway, is the country's second largest city with 240,000 inhabitants, and is the civic, business and retail center for a region with a population of 350,000. Creating a high quality system and keeping a tight lid on finances was the overriding objective behind the design of the light rail project in Bergen. The article highlights the difficult process involved in building a political consensus on this project. As elements which involve considerable urban planning challenges, light rail and bus rapid transit projects generally stir strong political passions. The ambition in Bergen is to build a modern, light rail system based on the positive, international experience of the past 30 years.