Great Belt Bridge Traffic Implications

Great Belt Bridge Traffic Implications

Prior to the opening of the link, an average of 8,000 cars used the ferries across the Great Belt every day. The traffic across the strait increased 127 percent over the first year after the link's opening due to the so-called traffic leap: new traffic generated by the improved ease, facility and lower price of crossing the Great Belt. In 2021, an average of 34,100 vehicles used the link each day. On August 7, 2022 a record 61,528 vehicles passed the bridge in 24 hours. The increase in traffic is partly caused by the general growth of traffic, partly diversion of traffic volume from other services via ferry and services.

The fixed link has produced considerable savings in travel time between eastern and western Denmark. Previously, it took approximately 90 minutes on average to cross the Great Belt in a car with transfer by ferry, including the waiting time at the ports. It took considerably longer during peak periods, such as weekends and holidays. With the opening of the link, the journey is now between 10 and 15 minutes.

By train the time savings are significant as well. The journey has been reduced by 60 minutes, and there are many more seats available because more carriages may be added to a train that does not have to fit on a ferry. The seating capacity offered by DSB across the Great Belt on an ordinary Wednesday has risen from 11,060 seats to 37,490 seats. On Fridays the seating capacity exceeds 40,000 seats.

The shortest travel times are: Copenhagen–Odense 1 hour 15 minutes, Copenhagen–Aarhus 2 hours 30 minutes, Copenhagen–Aalborg 3 hours 55 minutes and Copenhagen–Esbjerg 2 hours 35 minutes.

Flights between Copenhagen and Odense, and between Copenhagen and Esbjerg have ceased, and the train now has the largest market share between Copenhagen and Aarhus.

Together with the Øresund Bridge, and the two Little Belt bridges, the link provides a direct fixed connection between western Continental Europe and northern Scandinavia, eventually connecting all parts of the European Union except Ireland, Malta, Cyprus, and outlying islands. Most people from Zealand still prefer to take the ferry between Puttgarden and Rødby, as it is a much shorter distance and provides a needed break for those travelling a long distance.

For freight trains, the fixed links are a large improvement between Sweden and Germany, and between Sweden and the UK. The Sweden-to-Germany ferry system is still used to some extent owing to limited rail capacity, with heavy passenger traffic over the bridges and some single track stretches in southern Denmark and northern Germany.

The Great Belt was used by now defunct night passenger trains between Copenhagen and Germany, which were too long to fit on the ferries. Day trains on the Copenhagen-Hamburg route first continued to use the Fehmarn Belt ferries, utilising short diesel trains, but now also use the Great Belt route, which potentially allows longer trains to be used, increasing capacity.

By 2028, the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link is expected to be complete with much of the international traffic being shifted from the Great Belt Fixed Link. This more direct route will reduce the rail journey from Hamburg to Copenhagen from 4:45 to 3:30 hours.

Great Belt Bridge Overview

Great Belt Bridge Coordinates: 55°20′31″N 11°02′10″E
Great Belt Bridge Carries: 4 lanes of E20
Great Belt Bridge Crosses: Great Belt
Great Belt Bridge Official Name: Østbroen
Great Belt Bridge Maintained By: A/S Storebælt
Great Belt Bridge Characteristics Design: Suspension bridge
Great Belt Bridge Material: Concrete and steel
Great Belt Bridge Total Length: 6,790 metres (22,277 ft)
Great Belt Bridge Width: 31 metres (102 ft)
Great Belt Bridge Height: 254 metres (833 ft)
Great Belt Bridge Longest Span: 1,624 metres (5,328 ft)
Great Belt Bridge Piers in Water: 19
Great Belt Bridge Clearance Below: 65 metres (213 ft)
Great Belt Bridge Designer: COWI, Ramboll & Dissing+Weitling
Great Belt Bridge Constructed By: Hochtief, Skanska, Højgaard & Schultz and Monberg & Thorsen
Great Belt Bridge Construction Start: 1991
Great Belt Bridge Construction End: 1998
Great Belt Bridge Opened: 14 June 1998
Great Belt Bridge Toll: 275 DKK (€37/$40) per car.