Transport in Bergen

Please, take my money as I drive past

2012-11-11T13:20:00.000-08:00

This is what the majority of the people in Oslo and Bergen say.

Graphs showing the %
of people for and against
the toll systems, and
parking fees

Graphs from Bergens
Tidende, search conducted
by CICERO

The survey data I found in the newspaper
Bergens Tidende this morning was surprising
to say the least. Over 60% of people in
Bergen actually wants to pay taxes to drive
into the city!! As if the motorists in Norway
aren't overtaxed already. The results show the
Norwegian trend of overtrusting their
government that the taxes are spent wisely.

But is this really the case?

Another newspaper, the Aftenposten
published an article in September 2011 that
more than half the money payed by
motorists on the new E18 automatic toll
system disappears into administrative and
financing costs. This means that, even though
the automatic toll systems were implemented
to pay to recover the construction cost of the
road, less than half the money payed by
drivers is actually being used for that purpose.
I don't have the exact figure for Bergen, but I
would also assume similar statistics.
Moreover, part of that money is being used to
finance public transport, and too little money is
being spent on road maintenance. If I have not
made my point already,
I am against the toll charges for that very
reason.

The graph on the right shows the survey results
by CICERO,a Norwegian environmental
research sentre. The top two graphs shows the
percentage of people in large cities who favour
the toll systems and those who are against. The
bottom two show those in favour for mandatory parking fees
of minimum 15 NOK/hour to be charged at workplaces and
in shopping malls.

The results showed that people have more sences when it comes to the issue of parking. Around 80% of the people are against the obligatory parking fees to be charged at workplaces and shopping malls. To date, I have never heard of any country in which the government forces workplaces and shopping malls to actually charge their employees / customers for parking.

Of course, I support free parking as well, and I was relieved that the majority of Norwegians agree...but the reason for doing so was very Norwegian. According to the newspaper article, people are skeptical to paying to park at work and at malls because "the money just goes right into the pockets of the mall owners". Well, well......

What do you think? feel free to leave a comment below!!

"Folk sier ja til bompenger"

Watch out! Norwegian roads will shread your tyres!!

2012-09-30T03:38:00.000-07:00

There is one thing which has been bothering me ever since I started driving in Bergen in 2009 - it's the quality of the Norwegian roads.

They are just so horrible. There is no other word to describe the roads here. They are full of unexpected pothholes, huge cracks and uneven surfaces that you run the risk of seriously damaging your car should you drive into them at high speed.

The hole in Kanalveien - drive into one and win a new tyre!
(You'll have to pay for it yourself)

Norway is a wealthy country thanks to all the oil money - yet, they are not spending nearly as enough money on maintaining their roads. As a result, the road quality in some cases, are comparible to what I saw in Russia - a disgrace for a country that has a higher Per Capita Income than the United States!

Mind you, the Norwegian bridges and tunnels are spectacular, since the country has a long coastline with lots of islands in the fjords. Some of those bridges and tunnels are actually amazing to drive through.

But the roads! Look at the photo on the right; It is Kanalveien in Bergen. The hole in the picture measures about 10 inches wide, 8 inches long, and 3 inches deep. Its not a big hole, but if you drive into one at 50km/h you will blow your tyre for sure.

These are not the craters of the moon, but you need a moon
buggy if you want to drive over them in comfort

The second photo is in a residential street. Actually, you will find such roads in many residential areas around Norway.

Nothing seems to be done about them, and the holes only get bigger and bigger...until they spread so much that you end up with one gigantic hole which will suck up your entire car.

The holes in the third photo gets mended about once or twice a year, but the job is so poorly done that within a couple of months of reparation, the holes reappear, bigger than ever.

This same hole has been mended many times, but they just
keep reappearing

In many developed countries, if the road workers did such a shoddy job of reparing roads, they will be fired on the spot. It must be only in Norway that they get away with it.

This cobblestone road has certainly seen better days. Now, it
looks like a moon landscape

Check out the picture on the bottom; its taken by an old church close to the Bergen city centre. It doesn't show well in the pictures, but the bumps are so big that driving over them in a regular passenger car you would actually risk damaging the bottom. I have actually seen many cars scraping the bottom on this road.

The most suitable vehicle here would be the moon buggy from the Apollo missions. I'm being serious here...

Do you have any examples of bad roads in your neighbourhood? What is your local government doing (or not doing) about them? Let me know!

University of Bergen wasting valuable parking spaces

2012-09-29T01:53:00.001-07:00

For over a year now, parking spaces for the Univeristy of Bergen stands empty.

The site of the former student parking. For over a year, this
site has remained empty for no reason!!

Until the begining of 2011, students were assigned their own parking spaces at the two parking lots belonging to the University of Bergen.

The total capacity was around 30 cars, which was not much to begin with, but all of a sudden, one of the parking spaces located adjacent to the university building was closed down for no apparent reason. People thought maybe the university plans to build something there, even though the space was just enough for about 16 cars... The sign indicating "student parking" has been replaced by a "parking forbidden" sign threatning the car drivers that their vehicle will be towed away if they parked there.

Now, over a year has elapsed, and the place is still empty!! All there is are just some tiles dumped on the ground...that's it! This is outrageous, since there was not enough parking spaces to begin with, and if anything, since the number of students at the university are increasing, so should the parking capacity.

The space provided parking for 4 or 5 cars. Now, it is just closed
down with chain and lock. What is the matter with these people?

Now look at the other side of the same parking lot. A space which provided additional parking for students and staff is also closed down for no reason whatsoever. Over here, the University went as far as to place concrete blocks connected with chains and locks to stop people from parking there.

Since the space is not being used for anything, what is the problem with people parking there?

In the background of the picture on the right, you will see another parking lot. This lot normally holds around 40 cars, but because of some construction work, the capacity has been reduced by about 1/4. The competition for a spot in one of these parking lots is fierce. Normally, by 8am on a weekday, all the spots are already taken. You would normally have to wait until around 1pm to find a spot.

If people park in an "empty space", then
they get one of these. Click on the image
to enlarge!

So in total, the university is forcing 30 cars (more actually, since not all the cars are parked the entire day) every day to park at a paying parking spot. It is just a waste of money for the students and staff. What is the university directors thinking?? Wasting valuable parking space in the city centre...

The picture on the right, I discovered under the windscreen wiper of one of the cars parked in the parking lot (not my car). As it happens, the university is not utilising all the spaces in the parking lot either, and anybody who (righteously) tries to park there now gets a 500 NOK (approx. US$90) fine. Since when did the university become a parking company!? Last time I checked, the university is a place which offers a place of higher education, not a place where people get fined for parking in a spot that was rightfully theirs until a year ago.

Take note on the photo; on the place where it says "bilmerke" (car make, in Norwegian), the warden wrote "Polo"! What jackass!! The make of the car is Volkswagen. The model of the car is Polo. It does not matter to this poor owner of the car though...

I wonder if this is just a symbolic thing, or is there actually a legal obligation to pay the fine?

Update 4th October 2012

Now, the spaces have been further reduced by about 8 cars because of some ridiculous construction work that nobody has asked for. On top of that, the university didn't bother to replace those lost spaces! What are they thinking? At least remove the chain & locks from the parking space in the second picture, at the same time making good use of the parking spaces shown in the pictures on the top! It's not like its going to hurt anybody...

Update 16th November 2012
The space has been further reduced! Actually, it hasn't, but....around 8 spaces has been converted into charging areas for electric cars. Now, conventional cars are not allowed to park in those places, only cars with licence plates starting with "EL" (indicates that the car is electric). I have seen cars from Poland with licence plates starting with "EL" (not electric, though). If they just have a faux charging cable sticking out, maybe they can park there without a fine?? Hmmm.....
Oh yes, the chains& locks have not been removed yet. It may not be sticks & stones, but Rihanna could sure sing us a song!

New policy will lead to 10 million litres of wasted fuel

2012-09-19T01:42:00.002-07:00

My previous post was regarding the closure of Olav Kyrres gate in Bergen city centre, which took effect 2 days ago.

Not only has this policy caused traffic chaos in Bergen, I have calculated the side affect of this so-called "environmentally friendly" policy; increased fuel consumption and congestion = increased pollution.

Closure of this street means that motorists
now have to drive extra miles around the
city to reach their destination. Photo: flickr

Let me explain. The closure of this street is supposed to make it easier for people to walk, and make the bus drivers happier because they don't have to worry about manoeuvering around cars during rushhour. The truth is, the busses are still posing a constant threat to pedestrian safety, so if they want to close down the street, they should close it down to all traffic, including busses and taxis.

Moreover, this new policy is leading to all the car drivers who have previously used this street to go all the way around the city. As I have mentioned in my previous post, this means added distance, and more traffic lights. From my experience, out of the 12 traffic lights on that route that we are forced to take from now on, at least 5 of them are always red. Stop & go driving always uses more fuel, so the proposed new route will lead to, on average, around 200ml of wasted fuel per car. This may not sound much but if you consider the following;

1. Bergen is a growing city. If the current population growth rate is 2% per annum, then it would take 35 years for the population to double.

2. This means that, even if the proportion of people driving to the city halved in the next 35 years, the number of cars will still be the same as today.

3. I do not know how many cars exactly passed the Olav Kyrres Gate per day, but if we assume 5000 cars per day on weekdays,and 2500 cars per day on weekends, it would be 30,000 cars /week.

4. That would be 1.56 million cars/year, and 54.6 million cars in 35 years.

5. If each car ended up wasting 200ml of fuel, that would come to approximately 10.9 million litres of wasted fuel. All that wasted fuel enters the city air in the form of CO2 and NOx, right into our lungs.

Do you see the problem now?

Update 29.09.2012

As expected, the traffic in the "diverted" roads got much worse! It was actually worse than I had expected, now it is a nightmare to drive through cerain parts of the city. That got some drivers cutting through residential streets and through the university area.

I do not understand what the policymakers were thinking in the policy design stage. The problem with Norwegian politics is that it does not involve the people in the planning stage. The people generally know about these things a day or so before the actual implementation. When it comes to evaluating the results and outcomes of the policy, they just look at the Olav Kyrres Gate and say how wonderful it is that there are no more cars there and how the policy had been successful. They do not take any consideration of the consequences and what additional problems the policy has created.

Do you have any stories to share regarding the poor policy planning in your town/city? Let me know!

Farvel Olav Kyrres gate - fordi du stenges for biler i morgen

2012-09-16T12:55:00.000-07:00

Olav Kyrres Gate in Bergen city centre will be closed to private cars from tomorrow. Molesting of motorists by the Norwegian policymakers knows no boundaries.

I am outraged to say the least, partly because I did not know about it until this morning when I read about it in the newspaper. Then I was outraged again by how small the article was.

This is a big issue! Olav Kyrres Gate is one of the main roads in the city centre which enables motorists to travel south directly through the city without having to reconnoitre through the complex one-way streets (One way streets? I think it is completely unnecessary for a small town of just 250,000 people!). Now all the cars have to add extra kilometres and traffic lights to their driving plan from tomorrow. Just imagine how much CO2 will be emitted by all the cars having to make a long detour around the city. Completely unnecessary.

The whole point of this, supposedly, is to make it easier for busses and taxies to go through the street without traffic jams. Big deal. The traffic jams are just going to shift places. The traffic jam will still exist in the streets. Just another place. Some reckon this will put drivers off from entering the city with their cars in the first place. I don't think so. In fact, because now that people have to drive the long route, cars are going to be in the city for longer, increasing pollution levels.

Click on the map to enlarge!

Imagine you're driving from Allehelgens gate (Point A on the map) to Rokkanshus (point B).Today, its just a 750 metre drive with 4 traffic lights, as shown in the blue rooute. But from tomorrow, its going to be 12 traffic lights and double the distance, as shown in red line. Lot of wasted fuel and time. And what for? Just to make some bus drivers happy?

The government cannot manage without the tax revenues from the car owners. Yet, its the car owners who are being punished for bringing in the taxes. What crazy world we live in.

Today, I took a last drive down Olav Kyrres gate in my beloved old car. The ride is bumpy, since the cobblestone road is not well maintained, so please bear with me. In a matter of hours, its all going to be part of history.

We can continue driving our old cars for the rest of our lives, and still not pollute as much as it took constructing one of them new "bybanens". It's disappointing, really.

Check also; New policy will lead to 10 million litres of wasted fuel for more about this issue.

Any comments? Please feel free to make one below!

Bilder av Bybanen krasj / Photos of Bybanen crashes in Bergen

2012-08-25T09:02:00.000-07:00

Since the opening of the Bergen Bybanen in June 2010, many cases of crashes and near-misses have been reported.

Did you know that the Bybanen (Bergen light rail) has been crashing even before the official opening? Not once, but twice before opening, and many times since!

The first Bybanen crash happened during one of the tests before the
official opening.

The first crash happened on 7th of June 2010 at around 13:40, Two bybanen wagons crashed into one another in the Bergen city centre close to the last stop, Byparken. Nobody was injured, but one of the wagons derailed, and both wagons suffered damages.

This was the first known crash of the Bybanen in Bergen, and many people feared whether the operators were competant enough...

(Transferred from NRK website http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/distrikt/hordaland/1.7156859)

11th June 2010 - Bjørnsonsgate

Poor design of the Bybanen tracks have lead to Bjørnsonsgate
being a postential death trap. Caution is advised when crossing

The second crash in less than a week occured around noon on Bjørnsonsgate 22, when the Renault passenger car crashed into the right side of the Bybanen, and had to be towed away.

This was the second crash which occured even before the official opening of the Bybanen! The poor route planning has lead to Bjørnsonsgate having many roads crossing through the Bybanen tracks.

(Transferred from NRK nyheter) http://www.nrk.no/nyheter/distrikt/hordaland/1.7163679

One would wonder what the light rail is doing on street level in the first place, as if the streets weren't crowded enough already. By designing the Bybanen to cross roads and sidewalks countless number of times poses a threat to cyclists, pedestrians and the traffic. Obviously the pedestrians, cyclists and the cars were using that road from the time before the Bybanen. The most sensible thing to do would have been to dig a tunnel underneath the road, saving time (less waiting time at intersections), space and possibly even people's lives.

2nd August 2010 - Bystasjon

The driver who made a wrong turn out of the Bystasjon parking house in Bergen Sentrum was struck by the Bybanen headed towards Nesstun around 14:20. The traffic lights for the Bybanen and for the cars coming out of the parking house turned green at the same time. The cars were only supposed to turn left, towards Danmarks Plass. Instead, the driver made a right turn.

No one was injured in the crash. Although the damage to the Bybanen was minimal, the tram was taken to Kronstad depot for servicing.
This was the second crash between cars and Bybanen, and the third Bynanen crash in history.

Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5209797.ece

5th August 2010 - Danmarks Plass

Two Swedish Ladies got the shock of their life when their Toyota Aygo was rammed into by the Bybanen around 18:50.

The car was making a right turn from Fjøsangerveien to Ibsens Gate when, to their horror, the Bybanen crashed into the rear right hand side of their car. According to Frank Listøl of the police, the passenger of the car was slightly injured, but the driver escaped injuries. The car was severly damaged and had to be towed away.

It became illegal to make a right turn in the Danmarks Plass intersection after the opening of the Bybanen.

(Transferred froµ Bergens Avisen) http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5213625.ece

The intersection at Danmarks Plass was extremely dangerous and congested to begin with, and the addition of the Bybanen at street level only created more chaos.

For example, the ambulance driving from the city centre to Haukeland Hospital have to turn left to Ibsens Gate at the Danmarks Plass intersection. With the addition of Bybanen to the traffic, the waiting time at the intersection became considerably longer. Even though the motorists try to make way for the ambulance, during the rushhours there is only so much that can be done to let the ambulance through the congested intersection.

25th August 2010 - Sentrum

The truck driver was shocked to discover that he had clipped the Bybanen as he was attempting to make a right turn at Lars Hilles Gate close to Bergen emergency treatment centre around 17:20. The rear part of the truck swung out to the left (judging from the length of the overhang, probably about by 1 metre).

On this part of the road, the cars and the Bybanen are forced to drive very close to each other, which naturally means that the margin of error is very small. Caution is advised to all drivers!

Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5238094.ece

8th December 2010 - Danmarksplass

Traffic came to a standstill in Danmarks plass when a man driving a Volkswagen Golf was crashed into by the Bybanen as he was crossing over the Gamle Nygaardsbro during the afternoon rushhour. The crash occured outside Tide company building, and the scene was closed for almost one hour following the crash.

The driver of the car was reported to be "in shock", but otherwise unharmed. The car suffered large material damages.

(Transferred from Bergens Avisen) http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5409392.ece

10th December 2010 - Danmarksplass

It happened again!! Same intersection as in August, the car was entering Ibsens Gate from Fjøsangerveien when the Bybanen headed for Bergen Sentrum crashed into the side of the car in the passenger section, setting off the side airbags. The car, which appeares to be an Audi A4, was severely damaged on the passenger's side door, as well as damaging the Bybanen.

Fortunately, the female driver of the car was not seriously injured, however the accident created chaos in the Danmarks plass intersection. There was also reported to be chaos on board the Bybanen after the accident, as a woman who had claustrophobia started screaming and shouting at the other passengers.
The design of the Danmarksplass intersection, with the addition of the Bybanen, means that when the cars enter the intersection there is a chance that they may be trapped within the railroad tracks due to congested traffic ahead...
Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5411481.ece

29th December 2010 - Slettebakken

The accident happened right before the Slettebakken station around 13:00. The conditions were slippery with snow when the Toyota Hiace van was hit by the Bybanen as it was crossing the tracks. The Bybanen came from the direction of the city and hit the Hiace on the side. Although the tram was not travelling at high speed, the combined weight of 42 tonnes (as opposed to Hiace's weight of approximately 1.6 tonnes) meant that the damage was severe for the van.

The van was coming from the right side of the tram, which meant the Hiace was hit on the driver's side; as a result the driver suffered cuts on the head from broken glass. The tram suffered minor damages on the side and the front.

(transferred from Bergens avisen) http://www.ba.no/nyheter/politikk/bybanen/article5429301.ece

22nd January 2011 - Fantoft

A Securitas van crashed into the left side of the Bybanen at high speed, causing the wagon to derail. The crash occured around 17:00, and the whole crossing was shut down for several hours, which meant no car could go in and out of Fantoft during that time.

Three people, including the driver of the van, were driven to the emergency treatment for checkups.

The crossing where it happened lies next to the Fantoft Bybanen station, and the crossing is at the end of a sharp, blind curb of the tracks. This is an extremely dangerous crossing since you have no idea that the Bybanen is approaching until about 10 seconds before the wagon enters the crossing! Many people have had close calls on that intersection since behind the curb lies a retirement home, with bright lights which resemble the lights of the Bybanen. So people think the lights are coming from the buildings, then all of a sudden they realise that it is coming closer and closer...

Picture at the bottom was taken by me!! I was almost at the scene of the crash at that time.

Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5462384.ece

7th February 2011 - Paradis

The BMW suffered severe damages and
had to be towed away after the crash.

A BMW stationwagon driven by a women in her 40s crashed in Paradis with the Bybanen headed towards Bergen. The car suffered severe damage to the front and the female driver who was alone in the car suffered minor injuries, but no one in the Bybanen was hurt.

The intersection is the one coming out of the sports gym, and the bybanen crosses the road leading in and out of the gym parking lot. The intersection lies just 100 metres from the mouth of a tunnel, and is difficult to see the Bybanen coming out of it.

It took almost one hour to clear the scene and for the Bybanen to be back in operation.

Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5482218.ece

26th October 2011 - Fantoft

The second crash to occur at the crossing of Fantoft Student housing happened around 21:50, when the Citroën belonging to BKF (Bergen Kirkelige Fellesråd, a church organisation) was crashed into the passenger side by the Bybanen travelling to Nesstun. The tram crossing at Fantoft are not regulated; there are only warning signs.

Even though the car which was crashed into was a church car, ït seems God wasn't on their side that day....

One person was reported to have been injured in the crash. The inpact spun the car around before it came to a rest in the middle of the tracks, blocking the passage of cars in and out of Fantoft, as well as for the trams travelling in both directions.

After the crash, the Bybanen could still travel under its own power. It took roughly 40 minutes for the Byban to be in normal operations in both directons.

Amazingly, none of the crashes which occured at Fantoft so far has been caused by drunken Fantoft students; the first crash involved a security company van, and the second, this one, involved a church organisation (whether they were drunk on communal wine, is not known).

22nd January 2012 - Bjørnsonsgate

The driverless Opel van which crashed into the Bybanen,
injuring three people.

A driverless Opel Vivaro van rammed into the side of the Bybanen on Bjørnsonsgate on a Sunday afternoon, sending 3 people to the emergency treatment. One man was cut severly in the head with broken glass. After the crash, the inside of the wagon had shattered glass all over.

Imagine if this had occured during the rushhour, when so many students are going to school... why do these modern tram designs have to have such large windows? All those broken glass could have easily blinded someone or cut someone up very badly!!

Inside of the tram was a mess after the crash

Worse still, this is the second crash which occured on the same street!

This is what happens when the lightrail and cars are on the same street level. This would not have happened if the Bybanen was designed to travel either above or under ground...

Transferred from Bergens Avisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article5893747.ece

4th October 2012 - Kaigaten

Police received a call just after 10am that a man had been hit by the Bybanen in Kaigaten. The impact threw him onto the footpath where he lay concious until he was taken to Haukeland University Hospital.

The 18 year old man had been coming from Festplassen when he wasn't paying close attention when crossing the Bybanen line, and was hit by the tram. He was lucky enough only to suffer minor injuries and not be dragged under the tram.

Source: Bergensavisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article6268014.ece

24th November 2012 - Sletten

The driver of the Subaru Forrester never saw the Bybanen coming when driging into one of the many Bybanen crossings between Sletten and Slettebakken stations.The car was making a left turn towards Bergenshallen just before 2pm when the Bybanen heading towards Nesstun could not stop in time, and hit the Subaru on the left hand side.

Although the car was hit severely, it was able to drive on after the investigation had completed. This is the second crash which occured at the crossing by Bergenshallen.

Source: Bergensavisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article6360532.ece

28th February 2013- Kaigaten

And here we go again. This time, the Bybanen hit a truck which was parked partly on the footpath. Nobody was injured, because the accident was merely a "scrape" rather than a proper crash.

Although the truck shouldn't have been parked there in the first place, why didn't the Bybanen conductor stop the tram if he saw that the truck was in the way? The place of the accident is between Nonneseter and Byparken stations, and its a nice straight line, with nothing in the way to obstruct vision. There is no excuse for not stopping to wait for the tram tracks to clear up instead of just plowing through and damaging both the truck and the Bybanen. Shortly after 2pm, the police confirmed that the truck had been driven away, and the Bybanen was able to move from the scene.

Photo: Magne Turøy
Source: Bergensavisen http://www.ba.no/nyheter/article6525682.ece

There are navigating buttons at the top of this page, so if you want to look at the maps of where the crashes have occured, the map is there with all the crashes listed in chronological order. You can match the numbers with the locations. You can see that there are accident "hotspots" - intersections where crashes are most common. Have the planners learnt anything from the past crashes and how they can be prevented in the future? I am not sure...

If you are from outside Bergen and want to know more about the Bybanen, here's a link to the Wikipedia article (in English): http://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bybanen_i_Bergen

I will be posting more articles (in two years since the opening, there have been so many crashes) so if you want to be updated, you can subscribe to my blog.
Also, if you have any comments, feel free to leave a comment!!
Maybe you were there when those crashes occured? I would like to hear about your experiences too!

Tips on buying a used car/ Tips for kjøp av brukt bil

2012-08-21T14:25:00.000-07:00

Choosing your new "used" car

So, you're looking to buy a used car. Buying a used car is a great way to save money, and if done right, it can be quite a pleasurable experience.

Bear in mind, that used cars come in all shapes and sizes. Technically, a car is considered "used" if it has been driven out of the showroom. This could be the case if it is a demo car or a test drive car. Often, such cars are available for much cheaper than their "new" counterparts, and are just as good, since they probably have not been driven so much and they would also have been well serviced. The downside is, that they are not cheap.

The advice I will give below will apply for older models, typically aged between 5 to 10 years old:

1. Take a look around the car to look for dents / scratches. Try to position yourself so that you are looking at the car from this position in the photo on the right. This angle makes it simple to look for dents or waves in the panelwork. For example, the reflections off the door panels of this Toyota are nice and even, without bumps or waves. If the reflection is wavy or uneaven, it may indicate that the vehicle has been involved in accidents, or it may indicate the existence of rust underneath the paint.

Depending on your budget, you may choose to overlook some minor dents or scratches. However, besides from lower resale value you should be aware of the underlying dangers beyond them. If the dented area looks like its been covered with fresh paint recently, it is possible that rust has built up underneath and the owner has attempted to cover it up with a bit of fresh paintwork. It may look fine now, but rust will appear within a year, if not checked. There have even been horror stories of doors falling off while the vehicle is in motion. The cause? Rust buildup around the doors. If you see bubbly paints, it will most likely indicate the existence of rust underneath. If there is further rust damage, your car could fly apart in a crash!!

Other places where rust is common: Around the tyre housing, door sills, around the tow hitch...

2. Look underneath the car for obvious fluid leaks, rust or damage to the chassis. In older cars, oil or other fluid leaks become common as seals and rubber components crack due to ageing (even more so in colder climates). Rubber components such as hoses are relatively cheap to replace; however, if there are large oil stains on the driveway where the car has been parked, the wise choice will be to avoid going through with the purchase altogether, even if you don't mind topping up the oil every week, as the problem will only worsen with time, and oil leaks are expensive to fix completely. The process involves dismantling parts of the engine and replacing the seals.

In areas where winters are harsh, you would also need to check for salt damage to the chassis. In most countries, salt damage tend to be worse on the passenger side of the car, since salt mixed with melted snow build up alongside the kerb, and when the cars drive through them, the tyres spray the salty water all over the chassis. Severe rust damage to the structure of the car will cause you to fail your next vehicle safety controll, so if you discover rust in those places, have them checked out by a professional mechanic, preferably at a workshop where they have laser guided structure testing. If you suspect that the chassis have recently been given a fresh coating or filling, use a magnet to see if it sticks. If it doesn't, it probably indicates that the rusthole has been filled with filling. If so, do not purhcase.

3. Turn the engine on, and rev the engine to about 4500rpm (2500-3000rpm for diesels) for 10 seconds. Look for obvious smoke (steam in winter is ok), especially for diesel cars. Too much smoke (like in this photo) will indicate that the engine is not in a good condition, so avoid buying the car. Even if there is no smoke, it is still important to have it inspected by a professional mechanic. This is also a good time to inspect all the lights and indicators are working.

4. Look around the car again. But this time, take measurements of the panel gaps and compare them with the opposite side of the car. If the panel gaps are considerably smaller on one side of the car, then it probably indicates that the car has been involved in a crash on that side. It may have been nothing more than just a minor fender-bender; however in such a case it is best to look into the history of the car.

5. Look at the odometer of the car. Is it suspiciously low for a car of its age? It may just be that the car belonged to an elderly couple who kept it in the garage all the time and hardly used it. Or it could be that the odometer has been tampered with.

There are some parts of the car you can check to veryfy the authenticity of the odometer;

The doors. Open the driver's door wide and try to wriggle it up and down. If the door has up or down movements, the car is obviously not low-mileage.
The pedals: Look for unnatural level of wears in the pedals. If the rubber on the pedals seem suspiciously worn for the mileage of the car, the stated mileage is probably a lie.
The seats: Look for wear in the driver's seat. Again, in the case of a low mileage car, there should be little or no wear and tear.
The driver's carpet: Check for wear, making sure the material is consistent with the carpets in the rest of the car.
The seatbelt: In a low mileage car, there should be little or no wear in the driver's seatbelt. This is also a good opportunity to inspect that all the seatbelts have no significant wears or tears. Bear in mind, as the car ages, you will need to eventually replace the seatbelts, as you run the risk of them just ripping apart in an impact.

If there are high level of wear in any of those places, you should be suspicious of the car's stated mileage. It is important that you have it inspected by a professional mechanic. Tell him/her that you are considering to buy this car, but you suspect that the odometer has been tampered with. The mechanic can also look up the history to see if the recorded mileage match the actual distance travelled by the car.

6. Check the tyres for tread depth. For summer tyres, you should be able to fit a matchstick in the treads. If not, you will need to buy a new set of tyres. This could be used as a negotiation point of the price. You should also check that all the tyres have the same brand and design. Different tyre design on any of the four wheels may lead to the car getting into a dangerous skid under emergency braking.

Also, check the wheels. Are any bolts missing? In some cases with older cars, the bolt could just snap off while you drive, sending the tyre flying across 6 lanes of traffic (there are many videos on youtube of this happening, taken by dashcams) That is dangerous, not to mention bringing a lot of hassle to your motoring. If in doubt, renew the bolts on all four wheels when you purchase the car. Better to be on the safe side than to have one of your wheels fall off on the freeway!

During the test drive

1. Before you set off, check the steering. Take the wheel from lock to lock (ie, take it as far left as it would go, and turn as far right as it would go), listening for any noises coming from the power steering system. If you hear sounds similar to a broken fridge compressor, there is probably a leak in the power steering system.
2. Take the car gently through all the gears, taking note of any rattles and suspicious noises. It is also a good idea to take the car through some speed humps to test the shock absorbers for wear.
3. Testing the brakes; First, apply the brakes gently. How is the brake response? If you get any vibrations on your feet through the brake pedal, this probably means that the brake discs are warped and may need replacing. If the response is good with no vibrations, proceed to the next step.
4. When you are on a straight road with no other traffic, apply the brakes hard from, say 40km/h (25mph). When the wheels are not turned, does the car maintain a straight course, ie are the brake forces applied evenly in the left and right wheels?

Does the car pass the above tests? Then, probably you are buying a nice car that will get you around for some time. Still, it is important to get it checked over by a mechanic to avoid any nasty surprises and unexpected expenditures in the future. But the chances are, if the car you are looking at does not pass your test, it is probably wise not to go through with the purchase. In which case, you would have saved yourself a lot of misery.

Good luck with choosing your new "used" car!!
Any requests or anything you want added to the post? Feel free to leave a comment below! If you have any sour experiences regarding your purchase of a used car, you can also share it with everyone.

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Bensinpriser i Bergen / petrol prices in Bergen

2012-08-21T12:31:00.002-07:00

Prices are available for the following petrol stations; Last updated 04 Mar 07:40

Her er prisene for bensinstasjoner i Bergen: siste oppdatert 04.03.2013

Shell Storetveit (from Google streetview)

Shell Storetveit Last updated 4th March 2013 at 07:15
Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) 14.54 NOK/Litre
Diesel 13.40 NOK/Litre
Vpower NA NOK/Litre

Shop: Yes (has food, drinks, newspaper, engine oil, etc.)
Mechanic: Yes (However, very bad service-not recommended)
Other services: Vacuum cleaner, air pump
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No, but there is MEKK 300 metres down the road at Wergeland (by Rema 1000) which rents out trailers 350 NOK for 6hrs, 500 NOK for 24h.
*All petrol offered is unleaded.

Esso kanalveien (from Google streetview)

Esso Kanalveien Last updated 4 March 2013 at 07:40
Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) 14.40 NOK/Litre
Diesel 13.30 NOK /Litre

Shop: Yes
Mechanic: Unknown
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No

Statoil Fjøsangerveien - STENGT/ closed
Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) NA
Diesel NA
Shop: Closed
Mechanic: Unknown
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No

123 Kanalveien (from Google st. view)

123 Kanalveien Last updated 04 March 2013 at 07:20
Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) 14.44 NOK/Litre
Diesel 13.30 NOK/Litre
Shop: No
Mechanic: No
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No
*All petrol offered is unleaded.

YX AKP-Gården (from Google st. view)

YX AKP-Gården Last updated 4th March 2013 at 07:30
Blyfri 95 Bensin (unleaded) 14.63 NOK/ Litre
Diesel                                      13.45 NOK / Litre
Shop: Yes, (sells food, drinks, some car items)
Mechanic: No, however SnapDrive is just around the corner, they offer good service
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No

Shell Bønes Last updated 29th December 2012 at 04:40
Blyfri 95 Bensin (unleaded) 14.25 NOK /Litre
Diesel                                      13.39 NOK / Litre
V-power                                 NA NOK /Litre

Shop: Yes, sells food, drinks, newspapers. Also has carwash
Mechanic: No
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No

Statoil Flesland Last updated 27th February 2013 at 14:20
Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) 14.79 NOK /Litre
Diesel 13.69 NOK /Litre
Shop: Yes
Mechanic: Unknown
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: No

Shell Lagunen (from Google streetview)

Shell Lagunen Last updated 27th February 2013 at 14:40

Blyfri 95 Bensin (petrol) 14.79 NOK/Litre
Diesel 13.69 NOK/Litre
Shop: Yes (has food, drinks, newspaper, engine oil, etc.)
Mechanic: No (however, just 300 metres away within Lagunen, is Snapdrive)
Trailer (tilhenger) rental: Yes there are 3 or 4 available for rent depending on the day, and all of them are relatively new

Any suggestions or tips? Please feel free to leave a comment below. Also, if you want to be updated on a frequent basis, you can subscribe to me as well!!
I try to be as accurate as possible and update frequently, but as I am only one person, there are limits so please understand!

Why politicians have no idea

2012-08-10T03:43:00.000-07:00

As a petrolhead myself, I am often disgusted at what the policymakers come up with to punish car drivers in Bergen.

As I browse through the newspapers, I cannot feel but to be threatened by what those politicians are capable of coming up with to terrorise us motorists.

Cars outside Bygarasjen. This parking house with capacity of
2265 cars might be demolished. Photo from Byavisen

Increasing the road tolls? Demolishing the Byparken? Banning cars from the city centre altogether? Reducing speed limits? etc.etc...

Actually, its not a matter of IF, its simply a matter of WHEN such acts of terror will take place, to stop all motorists in their tracks.

Please, anybody with the brain power greater than that of a 5 year old can see what would happen if such thing comes to reality-in a city that is growing and expanding as we speak.

Before all you treehuggers out there start flogging me with your bio-degradable straps or whatever you use as belts, (since you undoubtedly are also against the leather industry), you should read on;

The reality is, that the Norwegian government cannot manage without car drivers; the annual taxes placed on cars constitute a great part of the nation's tax income (~~of course, oil exports and their high taxation also constitute a great revenue source~~...). According to Statistics Norway, there were 2.78 million cars registered in Norway at the end of 2011, with 2.37 million being passenger cars. That's almost one car for every 2 people in Norway, and almost 40% of all households own 2 or more cars!! The annual road tax for passenger cars are between 2800 NOK and 3300 NOK, depending on the type of fuel used and whether or not the vehicle is equipped with a particle filter (applies for diesels).

For argument's sake, lets say its 3000 NOK. Multiply that by 2.37 million and you get...well, a great sum of money, somewhere in the scope of trillions of korners. Each year. Every year.
Wait, it doesn't stop there. Think about the taxes we have to pay when we change vehicle ownership, when we pay for fuel, the road charges, traffic fines etc etc...
If those tax revenues dissapeared overnight, what do you think will happen to this country?

I am uncertain as to how those taxes from vehicles are spent, so if anybody could clarify me, I would appreciate it. My guess is, that such money are used to fund schools, the healthcare system, and welfare for the unemployed and the unemployable. In short, this socialistic paradice would be no more. The schools will no longer be free, the universal healthcare scrapped (which, may actually do good to reduce patient waiting times from the current several months to...several weeks perhaps?) The unemployed will need to find other means to get their money, and the luxrious prisons offered to criminals will become just like, eh, prison.

So, dear politicians of Norway, I ask you this.
WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO WITH US? We are not your farm animals; stop making our lives more miserable. You cannot force us to give up our cars. That would be communism, and we all know that communism is bad for our healths.

So what to do?
The goal is to reduce the number of cars in the city centre. Right now, here is what the politicians are coming up with;
1. Increasing the toll charge from 15 kroners to 25 kroners per passing for passenger cars (comes into effect in 2013)
2. Banning diesel cars on days with bad air quality (under consideration)
3. Alternate driving days basend on the last digit of the licence plate (under consideration)
4. Demolishing the Bygarasjen (under consideration)
5. Closure of Olav Kyrres Gate (took effect in September 2012)

Do you see the problem? It is just like the Æsop's tale "The North Wind and the Sun". If governments force people to change their habits, this creates conflict-i.e. policy resistance.

Take number 1 for example. The toll charge will go up from 15 kroners to 25 kroners next year. I know for certain that this will only have minimal effect. Maybe it will reduce traffic by 3%. This is only being done because the city wants to put vacuum cleaners in our pockets in order to suck out every remaining øre we have. And for what? I, like everybody else, want to get from A to B in the most comfortable, economical and quickest way possible. Current public transport in Bergen is expensive, slow and from my viewpoint, very ineffective. Thus, I know that I won't give up my car just because of increased toll charge. There are ways around the toll system, and people will just take the routes which are toll-free.

The number 2 is aimed to reduce the nasty smog in Danmarksplass. The air there is filthy on winter days when there is no wind movement. Most of the smog is from the exhaust of cars; and the smog contains nitrogen dioxide, which makes it harmful to human health. Most health complaints come from people who work or live in the area (~~surely it is possible for those people complaining to find work outside of the city or live in the countryside?~~?). But wait a moment! Wasn't the government encouraging people to buy diesel cars? Yes, they have better fuel economy. Yes, they emmit less CO2 than petrol equivalents. But the governemnt overlooked the existence of nitrogen dioxide, and now want to ban diesels on winter days. Poor people who bought diesels thinking they were saving the environment. Another example of epic policy fail.

I guess number 3 became most famous during the Beijing Olympics when cars with even number on the last digit of their licence plate were allowed to drive on some days, and cars with odd numbers on other days. This logic is easy enough; it immediately reduces the number of cars in half. But this workes well in China because they have such powerful network of police systems which can enforce the law. In Bergen, police are so underfunded to the extent that their cars are not even issued with GPS so they won't be able to increase their capacity any further. Then the city would have to rely on London-styled surveillence camera grids, which of course is a waste of money for such a small city like Bergen. Do the politicians think successful implementation will be achieved this way? This has not been implemented so far. Let's keep it that way.

The Bygarasjen in question in number 4, for those that do not know, is the largest parking house in the city with a capacity of 2265 cars and is open 24 hours daily. It is not the prettiest building in the city, but it sure is functional. Its located conveniently close to the city centre, within walking distance to everything, and it combines a large shopping mall. To demolish this and replace it with nothing is just plain foolish. If anything, they should be increasing the capacity by building additional floors and creating basement floors. This topic regarding the Bygarasjen seems such a taboo here that everybody is afraid to even speak of it. Come on people, the city is expanding further and further into the surburbs, more people are working in the city, and those people have to commute every day. It only makes sence to make it easy and convenient for them so that they can engage in economical activities instead of being stuck in city traffic for half a day looking for a place to park.

As for number 5, the closure of Olav Kyrres Gate street, I have written a separate article about it, so please reffer to New policy will lead to 10 million litres of wasted fuel

So all the existing policies or policy ideas are unrealistic. I can think of a dozen better solutions, some are shown below. Hopefully, some policy maker will see it and there will be changes for the better...

Suggested solutions

1. Private collective transport (car pooling)
The private transport and collective transport seem worlds apart, (eg. passenger cars VS busses) but it is possible to combine them. Here's how:
Set up a large parking lot (possibly underground to save space) just outside the city automatic toll booths where everyone can park for free. Right outside, set up a waiting area, similar to a bus shelter. They are divided into several sections, based on which area of the city the person wants to travel to. Other car drivers participating in the "private collective transport" scheme will pull over to let the people travelling in the same direction into their cars.

The incentive for car drivers to take strangers? Each time they go through with the "private collective transport", they have the toll charge added, not deducted, from their autopass account. For the safety of the people catching rides, drivers who choose to participate in this scheme will need to have a background check to make sure only safe drivers are taking passengers. For the people catching rides, it will be free every time, and for the drivers going into the city, it is an opportunity to make their autopass account last a bit longer.

What if you decide to go drinking with your colleagues after work and end up leaving town late? Don't worry, there will be minibusses operated by the municipality to take people from city centre to the parking place where they left their cars. The funding for such a schme can come from the intake of road charges, since there will always be people driving into the city without participating in these schemes, there will be constant sources of funding. If the fundings are lacking, this is where the oil money should be spent! If the government really wants to reduce the number of cars in the city, they should be prepared to make a drastic action such as this one.

2. Lower the price of collective transport
The main reason why people still choose to drive to town is because it is cheaper. It costs 27 kroners per person one way on the Bybanen (Bergen light rail). That's 54 kroners both ways!! The cost by car, on the other hand is roughly half that, including the toll charge. In my case, I park for free but even if you pay for a couple of hours parking, it pays to go by car if you are travelling with 2 people or more. Montly cards for skyss are also much too expensive, even at student price. 400 kroners per month!? Since I don't go to town every day, I choose to drive there thank you very much.

The only way I would resort to collective transport is if the prices are cheaper. In Beijing and Kyiv (Ukraine), prices of bus rides cost only 1kr!! Sure, people there don't make as much but consider this. An average salary in Kyiv is approximately 4000 UAH, roughly 3000 kroners. People in Bergen make around 10 times that. But do the bus/tram tickets cost 10 kroners? No!

So how is it possible in Ukraine and China? Subsidies, of course!

Here's the problem. The oil money (which, supposedly belongs to the people) should be used for such purposes instead of just pooling it. Out of the 27 kroners, at least 75% should be government subsidised. If the price of the ticket was 7 kroners, would I travel by tram /bus? in a heartbeat.
After all, we are all cheapskates in the end, aren't we?

there will be more suggestions coming!!

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