Longyearbyen - Transport

Transport

Longyearbyen has a road network stretching 50 kilometers (30 mi), but the network does not extend to any other communities. In 2008 there were 1,481 registered road vehicles and 49 percent of all households had a car. Cars are registered with ZN on the license plates. There is a single workshop, Svalbard Auto, which is also a Toyota dealer.

Snowmobiles are a popular mode of transport and there are more snowmobiles than residents. In 2008, there were registered 2,672 snowmobiles and 69 percent of households owned at least one. Off-road motorized transport is prohibited on bare ground, but snowmobiles are used extensively during winter—both for commercial and recreational activities. Transport from Longyearbyen to Barentsburg (45 km/28 mi) and Pyramiden (100 km/62 mi) is possible by snowmobile by winter, or by ship all year round.

Svalbard Airport, Longyear is located at Hotellneset, 3 kilometers (1.9 mi) northwest of town. It has a 2,483-meter (8,146 ft) long runway and is the only airport which is permitted to serve aircraft from off the archipelago. Scandinavian Airlines operates daily flights to Oslo and Tromsø, while there are irregular flights to Russia. Lufttransport operates regular charter services to Svea Airport and Ny-Ålesund Airport, Hamnerabben. Arktikugol operates helicopters to Barentsburg and Pyramiden. There are two quays in Longyearbyen, one for export of coal and one for general goods. From 1907 to 1987, the mining companies operated a network of aerial tramways to transport coal from the mines to the port.