Stavanger kommune

Transport and Urban Development
The first car arrived in 1899, 20 years after the railway between
Stavanger and Egersund was opened.
Today approximately 60 000 vehicles are registered in Stavanger,
over 75% of which are private cars. This has had enormous
influence on development of the city. As the car became
the most important means of transport, designing the road
network became a major task. Car parking facilities had to be
provided. Increased traffic became a major problem, first in
the city centre and gradually throughout the entire city as new
districts developed and jobs were established outside the
centre. The motorway, which 40 years ago was supposed to
solve transport problems for the foreseeable future, is now
periodically jammed. Rush-hour traffic has become a problem
in large parts of the road network.
Dual-track, Jåttå station
Traffic, Madlaveien at Siddishallen
New roads have been built to remedy the situation. At the same
time, Stavanger has focused on reducing the negative impact
of car traffic in the city centre. The first major step has been to
ban cars from parts of the centre at Holmen and Straen. When
the Bergeland tunnel was opened in 1989, the main road past
the cathedral could be restricted to pedestrians. The Storhaug
tunnel reduced through-traffic in the Storhaug area.
In recent years, Stavanger has also focused on bicycle traffic as
a safe and effective alternative and on safety for pedestrians.
TRANSPORT AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT
42