The Frudal Tunnel ( no, Frudalstunnelen) is a road tunnel along the

Norwegian National Road 5 Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe *Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway *Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including the ...

in the municipality of

Sogndal Sogndal is a municipality in Vestland county, Norway. It is located on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The village of Hermansverk is the administrative center of Sogndal municipality. Other villages i ...

Vestland Vestland is a county in Norway established on 1 January 2020. The county is located in Western Norway and it is centred around the city of Bergen, Norway's second largest city. The administrative centre of the county is the city of Bergen, where t ...

county,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The tunnel begins at the Frudalen farm, goes through the mountains under the Frudalsbreen

glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its Ablation#Glaciology, ablation over many years, often Century, centuries. It acquires dis ...

, and exits at the small Berge farm area. The tunnel was opened on 29 October 1994 to connect the

Fjærland Fjærland or Mundal is a village in Sogndal Municipality, at the end of the Fjærlandsfjorden, in Vestland county, Norway. The Fjærlandfjorden is a branch going north off the Sognefjorden, the longest fjord in Norway. The village area is located ...

area to the rest of the region. Prior to its opening in 1994, there was no way to get from Sogndal to

(in Balestrand) other than by driving from Sogndal to Leikanger and then taking a ferry to Fjærland—quite a long journey. The only road connection to Fjærland was via the

Fjærland Tunnel The Fjærland Tunnel ( no, Fjærlandstunnelen) is a long road tunnel in Vestland county, Norway. The tunnel opened on 31 May 1986 and it is part of Norwegian National Road 5. The opening ceremony was led by former US vice president Walter Mondale ...

Jølster Municipality Jølster is a former municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It was located in the traditional district of Sunnfjord. The administrative centre was the village of Skei. Other villages in the municipality included Helgheim, Ålhus, Vas ...

to the northwest (that tunnel was built in 1986). After the Frudal Tunnel was built, the people of Fjærland began discussing changes to the municipal borders. On 1 January 2000, the entire Fjærland area was transferred to Sogndal municipality. On 1 January 2020, the municipalities of Balestrand and Sogndal (and

Leikanger Leikanger () is a former municipality in Sogn og Fjordane county, Norway. It was located on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center was the village of Hermansverk, which also was the ...

) were merged into one large

Sogndal Municipality Sogndal is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is located on the northern shore of the Sognefjorden in the Districts of Norway, traditional district of Sogn. The village of Hermansv ...

References

Sogndal Road tunnels in Vestland 1994 establishments in Norway {{Norway-tunnel-stub