– We want to increase activity on road construction and build some of these large projects that have been planned, Solberg tells NTB from a bus trip in Western Norway – a part of the country where she believes the governing parties have failed on the road front.
During the trip, she has, among other things, visited the development of Rogfast, a connection under the Boknafjord that will be the world’s longest undersea road tunnel.
– I know that many people think it’s nice to take a ferry and eat svelte when they’re on holiday, but when you have to travel back and forth every day, it’s a barrier. It is a barrier to commuting and a barrier for companies and labour, says Solberg.
– Deprioritizing the West
The right-wing leader reacts in particular to the fact that the government has not prioritized Hordfast – a project which, together with the aforementioned Rogfast, will make the entire stretch between Bergen and Stavanger ferry-free.
– Hordfast is the only socio-economically profitable project that has not been started. There are only two such projects in Norway, Sollihøgden and Hordfast, says Solberg on the phone from Haugesund on Wednesday.
Today, the Erna bus would take three hours to get from Haugesund to Bergen. With Hordfast, travel time will be halved, according to the project websites. Nevertheless, the government chose to postpone Hordfast in its national transport plan.
– There is a downgrading of Western Norway and the ability to adapt and the power to adapt in Norway going forward. A lot of the value creation takes place in Western Norway, says Solberg.
Will build out
In the Right alternative proposals for the National Transport Plan, they have increased the framework by 5.4 per cent from the government’s proposal. This corresponds to NOK 65 billion over 12 years.
Among other things, Solberg will use the money on projects that are already planned and ready to be started.
– What is very strange about the government’s proposal for the National Transport Plan is that they included a number of projects that have not been fully planned and are at the thought stage. At the same time, they took away projects that billions of dollars have been spent on planning, such as Hordfast and Ringeriksbanen, where it was just before work could begin.
– It is a terribly bad and wasted use of money. Because if we put them in the drawer and say we’re not going to do anything about this for the next twelve years, then the plans will probably be out of date and have to be reviewed again, she says.
– There is no plan
The government’s transport plan ran aground in the Storting and was not adopted as a whole. Instead, the various parties gathered around different parts.
– This means that there is no plan. It really means that a new government makes its own priorities, says Solberg.
Her priorities are written down in Høyre’s plan. There is, for example, the Ringeriksbanen, another project the government has pushed forward.
– The Ringeriksbanen means a lot to relieve the housing market in Oslo. It will trigger a large area that will be 30 minutes away from Oslo. It means a lot to families’ ability to get a home at an affordable price, she says.
In Høyre’s plan, they will, among other things, strengthen the road company Nye Veier. They will also prioritize the following seven projects, which the government had taken out of its own plan:
* E18 Ramstadsletta-Nesbru
* Ringeriksbanen
* Wordfast
* The Vestfold Line double track Stokke-Sandefjord
* E39 Vik-Molde
* E6 Narviktunnelen
* Rv. 19 Moss
* Ofotbanen – crossing tracks
#Erna #Solberg #promises #road #construction #wins #election
2024-08-30 16:22:10
