1893
Steam across the strait
The private Sildekompagniet launches the first scheduled steam ferry between the herring pier on Silderø and the market square on Solvø. Two sailings a day, weather permitting; often not.
Om oss · About us
Ninety-eight years of getting the skerries to work
Solvhavn Trafikkstyre — the Solvhavn Transit Authority — is a public body owned by the city of Solvhavn. We run two metro lines, two ferry routes and one funicular across seven islands, employ 312 people, and answer to every passenger who misses a boat.
7 Islands served
25 Stations & piers
5 Lines, three modes
41.2 million Journeys in 2025
312 Staff
23 of 25 Step-free stations
A short history
1928
The Authority is founded
On 14 March 1928 the city council merges the tramway concession, the pier company and the ferry fleet into one public body: Solvhavn Trafikkstyre. The first board meets in a rented room above a fishmonger on Torgbrygga.
1931
Fjellbanen opens the cliff
The funicular links the Lower Cliff harbour to the Lookout above. Its two cars are named Anna and Bjørk and have met at the passing loop, on the minute, ever since — through the 1974 rebuild and 46 storms.
1946
One ticket, every deck
The last private ferry concessions are absorbed. For the first time a single Solvhavn ticket is valid on every vessel, tram and the funicular — the founding idea of everything we still do.
1979
The last tram
Tram line 3 makes its final run along the Vika embankment, its route already promised to the tunnel borers. The rails were lifted in a week; the elderly depot cat, Skippy, was adopted by the ferry crews and sailed for years after.
1984
M1 Kystbanen — metro under the strait
Eleven years of boring end as the first metro train breaks through the Vestrestunnelen. The Mayor of the day, Signe Aas, drove it herself, badly, at no more than walking pace.
1998
M2 Sildbanen reaches Nordholm
The second tunnel links the university island and the old herring isle to the same platforms at Solvø Torg. Journey times across the city halve; the ferry jetty at Silderø gains a heated waiting room.
2016
Electric ferries
The four Måse-class electric ferries enter service on the Gull Route, followed in 2019 by three Lunde-class boats on the Lighthouse Route. Overnight charging at the Torg piers, from tidal and wind contracts.
2026
Contactless everywhere
Gates, piers and funicular all take contactless payment with a daily price cap. This year we carry our 41-millionth journey and publish the network data behind this website as one open timetable.
Styre · Governance
A board of nine, in public
The board is appointed by the Solvhavn city council: six members from the council's parties, two passenger representatives nominated by the commuters' association, and one staff representative. Meetings are open to the public and held at headquarters on the first Tuesday of each month, except July.
Chair of the board: Sigrid Ulvedal. Chief executive: Elias Vinterstrand. The annual report and audited accounts are published each March at the Torg ticket office and on request.
Miljø · Sustainability
Tide, wind and timetable
Every metre travelled on the network is powered by electricity from tidal and wind contracts signed with the Tavmark coastal grid. The ferries charge overnight at the Torg piers; the metro regenerates power on every descent toward the sea. Our target for 2030: zero-emission maintenance vessels and a fossil-free depot, without a single minute added to the timetable.
41.2 million journeys in 2025 — roughly 192 for every person on the islands.
Tilgjengelighet · Accessibility
Our accessibility commitment
Step-free travel
All 19 metro and funicular stations are step-free from street to platform, with tactile guidance strips and hearing loops at fare gates. Ferries board by ramp at every pier. At Gull Holm the landing stage is tidal — ring the bell on the pontoon and the crew will assist; at Skerry Cove the ramp runs at 1:8 at low tide and the crew will radio ahead for a boarding chair on request.
On board
Every metro train has a multi-purpose compartment for wheelchairs, prams and guide dogs, adjacent to the middle doors. Ferries carry reserved seating on the enclosed deck and an accessible wc. The funicular cars are level-entry with a conductor present at both stations during all opening hours.
Information
Station and on-board displays alternate Tavsk and English, and the departure board on this site carries a text version for screen readers. Written journey assistance is available from tilgjengelighet@solvhavntrafikk.tmk — we will plan any journey door to door, with a person to meet you if needed.
Tell us what failed
If a lift is out, a ramp too steep or an announcement unclear, we want to know the same day. Call +902 55 14 399 (text telephone) or use the enquiry form — accessibility complaints are answered within three working days.
Tavsk and English, like the harbour itself
The skerries have always been bilingual: Tavsk in the kitchens and on the quays, English in the ledgers of the herring trade. The City Council resolved in 2019 that every station, line and pier of the network carries both names together — on maps, on boards, on the hulls of the ferries. This website follows the same rule everywhere, without exception. God tur — pleasant journeys.