Supervises the installation of safety measures

Home page Projects Supervises the installation of safety measures

Radar at Trollstigen.

Cautus Geo is monitoring Trollstigen. The aim is to build up knowledge with a view to establishing physical protection against rockfalls.

Problem statement

Rockfalls on Trollstigen are an ongoing risk. In June 2024, the tourist road was closed for more than a year. The road was also completely closed for a period during the summer of 2025. In the autumn of 2026, it was closed during the day. The cause is rockfalls from the steep and somewhat unstable rock face. Møre og Romsdal County Council is seeking a permanent solution to safeguard the tourist road.

Solution

Cautus Geo has set up a monitoring system using two different radar systems with weather data that automatically and continuously gather information on all movements in the rock face. This will provide the county council with new, improved and reliable information showing what is happening where in the rock face, and help ensure that the most effective physical safety measures can be put in place.

Trollstigen is one of the country’s most popular tourist routes. One million people visit this iconic road, with its 11 hairpin bends and spectacular views over the Istedalen valley, every single year.

The landslide sites at Kjelstadlinja and Grustaksvingen are under special monitoring. Møre og Romsdal County Council has commissioned Cautus Geo to set up a real-time monitoring system. The system alerts the county council if anything happens in the mountainous area.

Both rockfalls and ground deformation are being monitored simultaneously. This is the first time this has been done in history and will initially be carried out over a period of more than one year, until 1 October next year. The county council may then choose to continue the monitoring for 2028 and 2029 as well.

The monitoring system is set up with an alarm. If any movement occurs in the mountainside, the alarm is triggered. It is sent to the county council. One of the aims is to strengthen the basis for operation and maintenance, taking into account what is happening and what may happen in the rock face, based on the knowledge gained from the project.