Stor-Oslo Lokaltrafikk AS or SL was the public transport

Public transport

Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...

 administration for bus

Bus

A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...

 and ferry

Ferry

A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...

 transport in Akershus

Akershus

- Geography :The county is conventionally divided into the traditional districts Follo and Romerike, which fill the vast part of the county, as well as the small exclave west of Oslo that consists of Asker and Bærum...

, Norway

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 from 1973 to 2007. SL was organised as a limited company

Aksjeselskap

Aksjeselskap is the Norwegian term for a stock-based company. It is usually abbreviated AS or A/S, especially when used in company names. An AS is always a limited company, i.e. the owners cannot be held liable for any debt beyond the stock capital...

 owned by the Akershus county municipality

Akershus county municipality

Akershus County Municipality is the regional governing administration of Akershus, Norway. The main responsibilities of the county municipality includes the running of 35 upper secondary schools...

, the City of Oslo

Oslo

Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...

, and the Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications

Norwegian Ministry of Transport and Communications

The Royal Norwegian Ministry of Transportation and Communications is a Norwegian ministry established in 1946, and is responsible for transportation and communication infrastructure in Norway. It is led by Magnhild Meltveit Kleppa...

, with a third each. The company planned, marketed and organised the public transport in Akershus, but did not operate any buses or ferries—instead it issued contracts to operating companies based on public service obligation

Public Service Obligation

In transport, public service obligation or PSO is an arrangement in which a governing body or other authority offers an auction for subsidies, permit the winning company a monopoly to operate a specified service of public transport for a specified period of time for the given subsidy...

s (OPS).

The company was created in 1973 in part to help coordinate the public transport around Oslo. The metropolitan area of Oslo stretches beyond the city limits into the county of Akershus. This had created problems coordinating public transport between the counties. From 1 January 2008 the new company Ruter

Ruter

Ruter As is the public transport authority for Oslo and Akershus, Norway. The company, organized as a limited company is responsible for managing, but not operating, public transport in the two counties, including bus, the Oslo Metro, the Oslo Tramway and ferries...

 takes care of public transport in Oslo and Akershus.

All buses operated on contract for SL were uniformly painted green and SL took care of marketing and customer relations for the bus companies. The companies that operate for SL at the time of the merger was Nettbuss

Nettbuss

Nettbuss AS is the largest bus company in Norway owned by the Norwegian State Railways . It was until 2000 known as NSB Biltrafikk. The company has 14 operating subsidiaries throughout Norway and in Denmark and Sweden....

, Norgesbuss

Norgesbuss

Norgesbuss AS is a Norwegian bus company that operates in Akershus and Oslo. Norgesbuss has 450 buses, 1,100 employees and is owned by Torghatten ASA. The company operates on public service obligation contracts with Ruter, in addition to the Airport Express with the franchise NOR-WAY Bussekspress...

, Schau's Buss

Schau's Buss

Schau's Buss is a bus company that operates routes in Vestby, Oslo on contract with Stor-Oslo Lokaltrafikk. The company was established in 1943 and has about 40 buses and tank trucks....

, Schøyens Bilcentraler

Schøyens Bilcentraler

Nobina Norge is a Norwegian bus company, owned by Nobina, that operates in the counties of Akershus, Hedmark, Hordaland, Oppland, Østfold and Vestfold.-History:...

, Veolia Transport Norway

Veolia Transport Norway

Veolia Transport Norway is the Norwegian subsidiary of Veolia Transport, part of Veolia Corporation and operates through its subsidiaries buses, ferries and trams in the counties of Akershus, Finnmark, Nordland, Rogaland and Sør-Trøndelag, primarily through the purchase of former monopolists. The...

 and UniBuss

UniBuss

Unibuss, formerly known as Nexus Trafikk, is a Norwegian bus company that operates from Oslo, Norway. It is a subsidiary of the municipal Kollektivtransportproduksjon and was created in 2003 so the company could compete for the public service obligation contracts that Oslo was to operate the bus...

. In addition ferries were operated by Nesodden-Bundefjord Dampskipsselskap and Sandvika Fjordturer

Sandvika Fjordturer

Sandvika Fjordturer is a passenger ferry operator in Oslofjord in Akershus, Norway. The company operates from Kadettangen outside of Sandvika to the islands of Borøya, Brønnøya, Ostøya and Langåra on contract with Ruter, serving route 711. The company operates the ferries M/S Rigmor and M/S Rigfar,...

.