62° North – August 2022
RB 071 a Scania from the Rasmussen’s fleet travels along Hvalviksvegur on route to Saksun with passengers from local tour operator MB Tours. The Faroe Islands are a self-governing country of 18 islands, within the Kingdom of Denmark, set midway between Scotland and Iceland. The islands have a total population of 53,882 of which 22,878 live around the capital, Tórshavn on Streymoy island with the only other major conurbation being Klaksvík on Borðoy island with a population of 5,401.
Bus services are clearly defined by livery. Red is the Bussleiðin network which operates the free city services in Tórshavn, and blue (the Bygdaleiðir network) operates between towns and villages. There are also five buses painted yellow that operate the community network in Klaksvík. A small band of private coach operators provide tourist and private hire services, many of these coaches appearing in Bygdaleiðir livery for operating tendered services on behalf of Strandfaraskip Landsins (SSL) the public transportation company belonging to the Ministry of Finance.
In the capital, the Bussleiðin network consists of seven routes offering a comprehensive day-time service with limited evening and Sunday operations. Most bus stops have timetables and easy to read network maps (fig 1). The Bygdaleiðir network is operated by a modern fleet of coaches and consists of 25 routes many with irregular timetables and route variations which make timetables difficult to understand. The network does however provide connectivity with feeder routes from smaller villages into the main road routes and links with the inter-island ferry services.
The road infrastructure is excellent and the system of road tunnels amazing, including the now famous 11km long Eysturoy tunnel featuring the world’s first underwater roundabout complete with art installation and its own specially commissioned music.
Gundurs Bussar operates the Tórshavn Bussleiðin on behalf of the Tórshavn municipality, the network having a PVR of 16 vehicles. AP 893 a Czech built SOR (SOR Libchavy spol. s r.o. Ltd.) BN model operating route 3. Photographed at the SMS shopping centre, the only edge-of-town shopping centre in the Faroe Islands.
BN 954 heading out of the city on route 1. The nearside view of the SOR showing its semi-low floor twin door layout.
(fig 1) Bussleiðin bus stops have timetables and easy to read network maps.
Mouritsen’s Bussar BJ 828 Irizar i6s waiting in Gasadalurfor on Vágar island for the return of a pensioner group on a day out from Tórshavn.
HZ Bussar HU 934, Volvo 9900 parked in its hometown of Streymnes on Streymoy island, on what passes for a summer’s afternoon in the Faroe Islands. HZ is a small operator with just seven employees.
HK Bussar HK 325 a Mercedes Benz Sprinter B17F new in 2015, sits at the Tjørnuvík terminal of Bygdaleiðir service 202. The five times a day service M-F only, plus two school day journeys from Oyrarbakki takes just 25 minutes and is designed to meet through service 400 Klaksvík – Tórshavn. Tjørnuvík is a seaside village with black sandy beach and a surf school set in a narrow inlet.
Former Bussleiðin SOR GB292 operating the shuttle bus service between Víkarnes and Tjørnuvík on Streymoy. The road down to the seaside village of Tjørnuvík clings to the cliff edge and, over the years, rock falls have reduced the width to single file so large vehicles are required to park at Víkarnes and use the park & ride. A set of traffic lights controls the flow of cars over a two-kilometre-long section of the road.DS 053 Iveco Evadys of Landleiðin (Jón Thomasen). Standing at the Klaksvík terminus of Bygdaleiðir service 410, Fuglafjørður - Gøtudalur – Klaksvík, this is the Saturday/Sunday only 13.40 departure. The service feeds into connections at Gøtudali for onward journeys to Tórshavn using the 6.2km Nordoya tunnel.
The Landleiðin depot on the quayside in Klaksvík. RM 651 is an Iveco Daily whilst TD 415 and BF 055 are Iveco Magelys.
Landleiðin’s BF 055 Iveco Magelys in the Klaksvík depot on a Saturday afternoon.
Klaksvík has its own fleet of five vehicles for town services operated by Askham. The fleet consist of two Mercedes Benz Sprinters and three Volvo full size buses. The two farthest from the camera were originally registered in 2012 to NFs Turistbusser in Holstebro (Denmark) and transferred to Askham’s in 2014. The one vehicle not in the photograph was parked in a residential area on the opposite side of the harbour, although no Saturday service appears to operate.
Sporting a personal registration Askham’s Volvo B12M-62 with Aabenraa 8500 body was new in 2002. Askham share the parking space on the Klaksvík quay with Landleiðin, although this view shows the bus parked across several bays of the public car park.
HK Bussar HK 933 Volvo 9900 C53F new in 2019 operates a private hire journey for a visiting sports team.
Terminus in Tórshavn for the Bygdaleiðir network is on the quayside in front of the Smyril Line’s (Hirtshals, Denmark - Tórshavn, Faroe Islands – Seyðisfjørður, Iceland) ferry terminal. RB 740 is a Neoplan Tourliner from the Rasmuussen’s fleet. The quay is also served by Bussleiðin route 6.
BUSS 1 operated by Poulsen Bussar of Toftir is a MAN Lion’s coach. Heading out of Tórshavn on highway 10 having just departed the Smyrial terminal. Sitting atop the rock formation on the right is the Skansin fort and lighthouse.
HK Bussar HK 933 a Volvo 9713 C44F dating from 2012 is operating the airport shuttle into Tórshavn. This was the oldest vehicle seen on a regular express service.
