Essingeleden
Encyclopedia
Essingeleden is a motorway that goes from Solna
to Stockholm
, Sweden
, crossing the westmost parts of central Stockholm, by going over Kungsholmen
, Lilla Essingen
, and Stora Essingen
.
Essingeleden has three bridges — Fredhällsbron
(270 m), Essingebron
(470 m), and Gröndalsbron
(460 m) — and one tunnel, Fredhällstunneln (210 m), which is one of the most trafficked tunnels in Europe. The road is part of European route
E4
and E20
, and is the most heavily trafficked road in Sweden, with about 150,000 vehicles per day. In August 2007 this has increased to 170,000 cars per day, because Essingeleden is the only road through central Stockholm that is exempt from the Stockholm congestion tax
, and because of repairs of the main road through the inner city. This has caused big traffic jams on Essingeleden and Södra länken
.
The road was inaugurated on August 21, 1966 with two temporary lanes in each direction on the western half of the road, as Sweden was about to switch over to right-hand sided traffic the next year. The road was fully operational first in September 1967 after Sweden had switched over to right-hand side traffic
, and Essingeleden became the first six-lane motorway in Sweden.
During the 1990s, the road was repainted from six lanes to eight lanes to increase the capacity.
, but the ring road is only very slowly being built. Not much happened 1966-2000, but then the Southern Link
was built (opened 2004). The Northern Link
will be completed in the coming years.
There are plans of building a parallel motorway further west. It will have several tunnels and will be very expensive, around 25 billion SEK. The project could start in 2012, but it is likely to be delayed further. The Stockholm congestion tax
(gross tax amount 800 MSEK/year) is supposed to be used for road and public transit projects in Stockholm.
Solna Municipality
Solna Municipality is a municipality in Stockholm County in east central Sweden, located just north of the capital Stockholm. Its seat is located in the 'city' of Solna....
to Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, crossing the westmost parts of central Stockholm, by going over Kungsholmen
Kungsholmen
Kungsholmen is an island in Lake Mälaren in Sweden, part of Stockholm City. It is situated north of Riddarfjärden and considered part of the historical province Uppland....
, Lilla Essingen
Lilla Essingen
Lilla Essingen is a small island in central Stockholm, Sweden, next to the larger neighbouring island Stora Essingen.Both Essingen islands are mainly residential areas, the smaller densely packed with blocks of flats while the larger is scattered with villas...
, and Stora Essingen
Stora Essingen
Stora Essingen is an island and a district in the Kungsholmen borough in Stockholm, Sweden. The Essingeleden motorway, part of European route E4, passes along a section of the eastern shore...
.
Essingeleden has three bridges — Fredhällsbron
Fredhällsbron
Fredhällsbron is a bridge in central Stockholm, Sweden. It connects the island Lilla Essingen to Fredhäll, a district on the island Kungsholmen, and, forming a section of the Essingeleden motorway, connects the Lilla Essingen interchange to the tunnel Fredhällstunneln.The bridge is made of...
(270 m), Essingebron
Essingebron
Essingebron are two parallel bridges in central Stockholm, Sweden, inaugurated August 21, 1966, and September 3, 1967. Forming a section of the Essingeleden motorway they connect the two islands Stora Essingen and Lilla Essingen and are the most heavily trafficked bridges in Sweden...
(470 m), and Gröndalsbron
Gröndalsbron
Gröndalsbron are two bridges in central Stockholm, Sweden, connecting the island Stora Essingen to the southern mainland district Gröndal.The older bridge, inaugurated in 1967, forms a 460-metre section of the Essingeleden motorway, of which 260 metres constitute the bridge, divided into three...
(460 m) — and one tunnel, Fredhällstunneln (210 m), which is one of the most trafficked tunnels in Europe. The road is part of European route
International E-road network
The international E-road network is a numbering system for roads in Europe developed by the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe . The network is numbered from E 1 up and its roads cross national borders...
E4
European route E4
European route E 4 passes from north to south through Sweden from the border with Finland, total length . The Finnish part lies entirely within Tornio in northern Finland, and is actually only long...
and E20
European route E20
The European route E 20 is part of the United Nations International E-road network.It runs roughly west-east through Ireland, the United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, Estonia and finally Russia. The length is . The road is not continuous, at three points, a sea crossing is required. ...
, and is the most heavily trafficked road in Sweden, with about 150,000 vehicles per day. In August 2007 this has increased to 170,000 cars per day, because Essingeleden is the only road through central Stockholm that is exempt from the Stockholm congestion tax
Stockholm congestion tax
The Stockholm congestion tax , also found referred to as the Stockholm congestion charge, is a congestion pricing system implemented as a tax levied on most vehicles entering and exiting central Stockholm, Sweden...
, and because of repairs of the main road through the inner city. This has caused big traffic jams on Essingeleden and Södra länken
Södra länken
Södra länken , National road 75 , is a motorway in Sweden connecting Essingeleden , Stockholm with Värmdöleden , Nacka. Södra länken is 6 km in length, of which 4.7 km is in tunnels. This makes it the second longest urban motorway tunnel in Europe after Madrid M30 orbital motorway...
.
History
Dagen H
Dagen H , today mostly called "Högertrafikomläggningen" , was the day, 3 September 1967, on which traffic in Sweden switched from driving on the left-hand side of the road to the right...
, and Essingeleden became the first six-lane motorway in Sweden.
During the 1990s, the road was repainted from six lanes to eight lanes to increase the capacity.
Plans
Essingeleden has on several occasions been included in plans to create a ring road around StockholmStockholm ring road
The Stockholm Ring Road is a half-completed ring road around central Stockholm, Sweden. There have been many plans over the years of a ring road around central Stockholm, but all of them have been cancelled at some point. , about half of the ring road is now built.-History:The first plan to build...
, but the ring road is only very slowly being built. Not much happened 1966-2000, but then the Southern Link
Södra länken
Södra länken , National road 75 , is a motorway in Sweden connecting Essingeleden , Stockholm with Värmdöleden , Nacka. Södra länken is 6 km in length, of which 4.7 km is in tunnels. This makes it the second longest urban motorway tunnel in Europe after Madrid M30 orbital motorway...
was built (opened 2004). The Northern Link
Norra länken
Norra länken is a motorway in Stockholm, Sweden, between Norrtull and Karlberg, where it connects to Essingeleden. The road is part of European route E4 and E20 and the incomplete Stockholm ring road....
will be completed in the coming years.
There are plans of building a parallel motorway further west. It will have several tunnels and will be very expensive, around 25 billion SEK. The project could start in 2012, but it is likely to be delayed further. The Stockholm congestion tax
Stockholm congestion tax
The Stockholm congestion tax , also found referred to as the Stockholm congestion charge, is a congestion pricing system implemented as a tax levied on most vehicles entering and exiting central Stockholm, Sweden...
(gross tax amount 800 MSEK/year) is supposed to be used for road and public transit projects in Stockholm.