Road safety on the E16 in Vaksdal
E16 past Bogelia in Vaksdal, secured by Cautus Geo. A radar system has been established. Traffic is automatically stopped if earth, rock or snow masses threaten the road.
Problem statement
Rockslides occur on the E16 motorway past Bogelia. The avalanche report shows that there are avalanches with snow, stones or mud every year. In 2015, large landslides swept across the carriageway twice in May.
Solution
The route is subject to automatic and continuous radar monitoring throughout the year. The monitoring captures avalanches, flood avalanches, landslides and rockfalls that can occur after large amounts of precipitation and flood-like situations. Signals from the monitoring are sent to signs, barriers and lighting systems operated by the Norwegian Public Roads Administration along the E16 motorway. These handle road closures and openings.
Cautus Geo is securing the Bogelia landslide point on the E16 motorway between Bergen and Voss with radar located at Olsneset in Osterøy. The radar covers the section between Bogetunnelen and Kjennestunnelen in Vaksdal municipality. The contract with the Norwegian Public Roads Administration secures the monitoring, initially for up to 12 years.
The heavily trafficked European motorway between Bergen and Voss is part of the main route between eastern and western Norway. Almost 6,000 vehicles pass Bogelia every day. The Norwegian Public Roads Administration, in collaboration with several suppliers, has been monitoring the route with radar since 2017. In the summer of 2023, the service was put out to tender again. Cautus Geo was awarded the contract.
Cautus Geo established the latest and most modern system in autumn 2023. It provides more and better data, more analysis and automatic notification, closure and reopening of the road.
The landslide-prone section is almost one kilometre long. The landslide is triggered 960 metres above the road surface. There is a relatively slack mountain section. The landslides follow different stream paths. In height metres, the distance from the point where the landslide is triggered to the road surface is 600 metres. The avalanche masses will take from 45 to 90 seconds from top to bottom.
Customer
Norwegian Public Roads Administration
Year
2023 - 2035
Location
Vaksdal
Application area
Technology
- Avalanche warnings on the route are important. If a landslide is triggered and the road is closed for a long period of time, road users will have to use a long, narrow bypass road that is also prone to landslides.
Geologist Njål Farestveit in the Norwegian Public Roads Administration
Contact person
Switchboard telephone +47 990 96 580 or e-mail salg@cautusgeo.com
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