When you’re travelling from Akureyri to Reykjavík or vice versa you need to pass the Hvalfjarðargöng, an impressive road tunnel under the Hvalfjörður that is nearly six kilometers long. It feels like being shaped as a giant V with a maximum inclination of 8.1 %. Until it was opened you had to go be cay around the fiord making the trip 50 kilometers longer. That’s why there was a ferry boat connection from the harbor of Reykjavík to Akranes.
The tunnel was opened in 1998 and for 20 years you had to pay a road toll to use it; since 2018 you can use it free of charge. In 2010 the security of the tunnel was badly rated by the German ADAC automobile association – since then a lot of improvements have been made. Passing the Hvalfjarðargöng is a real experience, I’ve never seen such a tunnel anywhere else in the world.
Hvalfjarðargöng
Hvalfjörður
Reykjavík
Iceland
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