The modes of transport in

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

are governed by the country's rugged

terrain Terrain or relief (also topographical relief) involves the vertical and horizontal dimensions of land surface. The term bathymetry is used to describe underwater relief, while hypsometry studies terrain relative to sea level. The Latin word ...

and sparse population. The principal mode of personal transport is the

car A car or automobile is a motor vehicle with wheels. Most definitions of ''cars'' say that they run primarily on roads, seat one to eight people, have four wheels, and mainly transport people instead of goods. The year 1886 is regarded as ...

. There are no public

railways Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

, although there are

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...

services. Transport from one major town to another, for example

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

Akureyri Akureyri (, locally ) is a town in northern Iceland. It is Iceland's fifth-largest municipality, after Reykjavík, Hafnarfjörður, Reykjanesbær and Kópavogur, and the largest town outside Iceland's more populated southwest corner. Nicknamed ...

, may be by

aeroplane An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spectr ...

on a

domestic flight A domestic flight is a form of commercial flight within civil aviation where the departure and the arrival take place in the same country. Airports serving domestic flights only are known as domestic airports. Domestic flights are generally c ...

. The only ways of getting in and out of the country are by

air The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing f ...

and

sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

. Most of the country's

transport infrastructure Transport (in British English), or transportation (in American English), is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipeline, ...

is concentrated near the

Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

, which is home to 64% of the country's population.

Rail

Iceland has no public railways, although proposals to build a passenger line between

Keflavík Keflavík (pronounced , meaning ''Driftwood Bay'') is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. It is included in the municipality of Reykjanesbær whose population as of 2016 is 15,129. In 1995, Keflavik merged with nearby Njarðv ...

and

have been made as well as proposals to build a light rail system in Reykjavík. In the past, locomotive-powered and hand-operated rails have been temporarily set up during certain construction projects, and have long since been dismantled. Some artifacts from their existence remains in museums and as static exhibits.

Road

Iceland has of publicly administered roads, of which are paved. Organized road building began about 1900 and has greatly expanded since 1980.

Vegagerðin The Road and Coastal Administration ( ) is a state run institution in Iceland whose purpose is to construct and maintain roads and infrastructure (land and sea) in rural areas and between urban areas. Formerly belonging to the Ministry of the Inte ...

(Icelandic Roads Administration) is the legal owner and constructor of the roads, and oversees and maintains them as well. 11.4% of passenger-kilometres are by bus and 88.6% by car.

Sea

The major

harbour A harbor (American English), harbour (British English; see spelling differences), or haven is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be docked. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is a ...

s in Iceland are: *

* Hornafjördur *

Ísafjörður Ísafjörður (pronounced , meaning ''ice fjord'', literally ''fjord of ices'') is a town in the northwest of Iceland. The oldest part of Ísafjörður with the town centre is located on a spit of sand, or ''eyri'', in Skutulsfjörður, a fjord ...

Raufarhöfn Raufarhöfn () is a village located on the northeastern tip of the Melrakkaslétta peninsula in Iceland. History At one point in time, this small village was home to largest export harbor in Iceland. In the forties and fifties, the Herring ...

Seyðisfjörður Seyðisfjörður () is a town in the Eastern Region of Iceland at the innermost point of the fjord of the same name. The town is located in the municipality of Múlaþing. A road over Fjarðarheiði mountain pass (elevation ) connects Seyðisfjö ...

Straumsvík Straumsvík (, "stream cove") is a harbour on the northern shore of the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparse ...

Vestmannaeyjar Vestmannaeyjar (, sometimes anglicized as Westman Islands) is a municipality and archipelago off the south coast of Iceland. The largest island, Heimaey, has a population of 4,414, most of whom live in the archipelago's main town, Vestmannaeyja ...

Merchant marine:
''total:'' 3 ships (with a tonnage of 1,000gt or over) totaling 13,085gt/
''ships by type:''

chemical tanker A chemical tanker is a type of tanker ship designed to transport chemicals in bulk. As defined in MARPOL Annex II, chemical tanker means a ship constructed or adapted for carrying in bulk any liquid product listed in chapter 17 of the Internat ...

container ship A container ship (also called boxship or spelled containership) is a cargo ship that carries all of its load in truck-size intermodal containers, in a technique called containerization. Container ships are a common means of commercial intermodal ...

petroleum tanker An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a ship designed for the bulk transport of oil or its products. There are two basic types of oil tankers: crude tankers and product tankers. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined cru ...

1 (1999 est.) Transport ferries: The only habitable islands around Iceland are supplied and infrastructurally connected with the mainland via

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

which run regularly. Those islands are: *

The largest and most populated island. *

Hrísey Hrísey () is a small island off the north coast of Iceland, situated approximately north of Akureyri, in Eyjafjörður, at . Since 2004, the island has been a part of the municipality of Akureyri, having previously been a municipality in its ...

In the middle of

Eyjafjörður Eyjafjörður (, ''Island Fjord'') is one of the longest fjords in Iceland. It is located in the central north of the country. Situated by the fjord is the country's fourth most populous municipality, Akureyri. Physical geography The fjord is ...

in northern Iceland. *

Grímsey Grímsey () is a small Icelandic island, off the north coast of the main island of Iceland, straddling the Arctic Circle. In January 2018 Grímsey had 61 inhabitants. Before 2009, Grimsey constituted the ''hreppur'' (municipality) of Grí ...

An island in the far-north, the northernmost part of Iceland. Those

are considered part of the infrastructure system such as roads, and are therefore run by

like the roads.

Air

As of 2010, there are 99

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surface ...

s in Iceland:

Public transport

Public transport systems in Iceland are relatively underdeveloped and many areas are poorly served by

public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typical ...

. Limited services are provided in major urban areas, for example

Strætó bs Strætó bs () is a public transport company which operates city buses in the Icelandic capital, Reykjavík, and surrounding satellite towns and suburbs. The buses are bright yellow and are commonly called "Strætó" by the locals, a shortened ...

operates bus services in

, and Strætisvagnar Akureyrar in the northern town of

. There are nationwide

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

and bus services linking the major towns, although many

Icelanders Icelanders ( is, Íslendingar) are a North Germanic ethnic group and nation who are native to the island country of Iceland and speak Icelandic. Icelanders established the country of Iceland in mid 930 AD when the Althing (Parliament) met for ...

use

s to get from one major town to another including, Reykjavík, Keflavík and Grímsey. Automobile ownership is also relatively high—the country has one of the highest rates in the world—with 580 cars per 1000 people (as of 2000), a figure similar to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Unusually, this does not cause as much

traffic congestion Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s. When traffic de ...

as one might imagine, as the urban area of Reykjavík is relatively spread out in comparison to its population. Therefore demand for public transport services is low and has not developed as much as it has in countries with similar levels of economic development. In recent years, however, there have been proposals to construct a railway service between

Keflavík Airport Keflavík (pronounced , meaning ''Driftwood Bay'') is a town in the Reykjanes region in southwest Iceland. It is included in the municipality of Reykjanesbær whose population as of 2016 is 15,129. In 1995, Keflavik merged with nearby Njarðv ...

and

. The airport in Keflavík is Iceland’s main international airport; however, it is not situated close to the capital. It is currently served by a coach service, but Reykjavik City Council has agreed to conduct a

feasibility study A feasibility study is an assessment of the practicality of a project or system. A feasibility study aims to objectively and rationally uncover the strengths and weaknesses of an existing business or proposed venture, opportunities and threats pr ...

on the railway proposal, saying they are prepared to contribute 10 million krónur of funding. A light rail network within the capital has also been proposed. The country is served by some

services. For example,

are available from the

Faroe Islands The Faroe Islands ( ), or simply the Faroes ( fo, Føroyar ; da, Færøerne ), are a North Atlantic island group and an autonomous territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. They are located north-northwest of Scotland, and about halfway bet ...

and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

notable operators include

Smyril Line Smyril Line is a Faroese shipping company, linking the Faroe Islands with Denmark and Iceland. It previously also served Norway and the United Kingdom. is the Faroese word for the merlin. History Since 1983, the company has operated a r ...

amongst others. Ferry services also operate between

Þorlákshöfn Þorlákshöfn () is a town on the southern coast of Iceland in the Municipality of Ölfus. The town is named after Saint Thorlak who was a bishop at Skálholt. Its main importance is as a port as it has the only harbour on Iceland's southern coa ...

and the

Westman Islands Vestmannaeyjar (, sometimes anglicized as Westman Islands) is a municipality and archipelago off the south coast of Iceland. The largest island, Heimaey, has a population of 4,414, most of whom live in the archipelago's main town, Vestmannaeyja ...

, operated by

Eimskip Eimskipafélag Íslands hf. is an international shipping company with 55 offices in 20 countries and four continents; Europe, North America, South America and Asia. Eimskip specializes in worldwide freight forwarding services with focus on frozen ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Transport In Iceland

Rail

Road

Sea

Air

Public transport

See also

References