Bridge tolls
The Price for Crossing the Great Belt Bridge
How the bridge tolls are set
The construction and operation of the Great Belt Link is funded by its users. When the Great Belt Link was approved by the Danish Parliament, it was decided that the financing of the construction should come from the revenue generated by traffic.
The Great Belt Bridge is Denmark's most vital piece of infrastructure, connecting East and West Denmark and making it easy for both commuters and businesses to travel across the country. In 2025, more than 14 million cars crossed the bridge, underscoring the crucial role it plays for Danes. The price to cross the Great Belt is regularly discussed in the media. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions.
The users of the Storebælt fixed link and the Øresund Bridge pay for the facilities. First and foremost, the tolls are set so that the two companies can repay their debts at any time.
The prices for driving across the Storebælt fixed link are regulated through a political agreement from 2005 and are adjusted annually based on the consumer price index.
The prices on the Øresund Fixed Link are regulated in line with commercial considerations and the competitive situation. This has been decided in the 1992 Consortium Agreement between the Danish and Swedish owners. The Board of Directors sets the toll charges and the discounts.
Question and answerss
Who decides how much it costs to cross the Great Belt Bridge?
Who decides how much it costs to cross the Great Belt Bridge?
The fares are set by a majority in the Danish Parliament.
Why do you have to pay for the Great Belt and not other motorways?
Why do you have to pay for the Great Belt and not other motorways?
The Great Belt Link cannot be compared to an ordinary motorway or smaller bridges. The costs and complexity of building and maintaining a 17-kilometre-long bridge are on a completely different scale. The construction of the Great Belt cost 21.4 billion kroner in 1988 prices, which is roughly equivalent to 45 billion kroner today. Without user payment, there would likely not have been a Great Belt Bridge.
The price of mega-projects like the Great Belt, the Øresund, and the Fehmarn are simply too high to be covered by the national budget. It is user payment that has enabled Denmark to finance three world-class connections in just a few years without any cost to taxpayers.
The model is simple: if you use the link, you help pay for it. If you don’t – you pay nothing.
Today, the Great Belt Bridge is actually cheaper to use than ever before. Significant commuter discounts have been introduced, and in 2017 the price was reduced by 25 percent for everyone. With automatic payment, it is now historically inexpensive to cross the Great Belt.
Has the bridge not been paid off a long time ago?
Has the bridge not been paid off a long time ago?
No, in 2026 there is still a debt of around 17 billion kroner to be repaid and interest to be paid. The operation and maintenance of a bridge intended to last more than 100 years costs substantial amounts every year.
What would happen if the Great Belt Bridge became free?
What would happen if the Great Belt Bridge became free?
The Great Belt Bridge is Denmark’s most important traffic link and the effects would be felt throughout the country.
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A free Great Belt Bridge would likely see traffic increase significantly. This would raise maintenance costs and potentially create capacity problems. Already, the Great Belt Bridge is heavily trafficked during peak season.
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It would also affect other links – both the finances of the Fehmarn Belt project and the ferry routes between Zealand and Jutland would be undermined.
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A free Great Belt Link would also be free for foreigners. Denmark is the bridge between Scandinavia and Europe, and every year several hundred thousand foreign passenger cars and lorries cross the Great Belt Bridge, thereby helping to pay for the wear and tear this causes to Danish roads
Where does the money go?
Where does the money go?
The revenue from the Great Belt is used to pay for operating costs such as maintenance, salaries, and reinvestment.
Over the years, the Danish Parliament has also decided to use the surplusgenerated by Great Belt Link to finance other major infrastructure projects in Denmark.
In recent years,more than 15 billion kroners have been transferred to the state, which has helped pay for, among other things, the expansion of the Funen motorways.
Green Transport Policy and Growth Package
Green Transport Policy and Growth Package
The political agreement on a green transport policy signed in January 2009, means that until 2022, A/S Storebælt will contribute to the financing by means of dividend payments. This extends the repayment period by six years.
Dividends of DKK 900 million were paid for the first time in 2013. The remaining amount will be paid until 2022 and depends on the operating results.
In 2014, politicians decided to reduce the payment to A/S Storebælt for the operation of the rail section between Nyborg and Korsør Station by DKK 200 million annually as part of the financing of the spring’s Growth Package. This decision meant that the repayment period was extended by one year.
In 2015, the repayment period has remained unchanged on the year and amounts to 31 year on the basis of the most recently updated repayment period calculation. Calculated from the opening year, this means that the company will be dept-free in 2029.
As part of the 2016 Budget, the annual payment for the rail companies’ use of the fixed links across Storebælt and Øresund was reduced. In the case of A/S Storebælt, the reduction was in the order of DKK 270 million in 2016. From and including 2016, the amount is dependent on actual train traffic whereas previously a fixed fee was earmarked in the Budget. The reduction has a negative impact on the repayment period, which this year, however, is offset by lower financing costs and increased traffic growth.
On 21 September 2017, a political agreement was concluded concerning price reductions on the Storebælt fixed link and moreover that A/S Storebælt should contribute to the financing of the expansion of sections of the Funen motorway. It was also decided to reduce prices by 15 per cent with effect from 1 January 2018, rising to 25 per cent when the roads are completed in 2022. This has had an impact on the repayment period, which is extended by four years and now amounts to 34 years, whereby the debt is expected to be repaid in 2032. In the 2018 financial year, the repayment period is unchanged at 34 years.
