Despite the fact that the price of many goods has risen more in Sweden than in Norway in the last couple of years, there are still Norwegians who make pilgrimages to the neighboring country to fill their shopping baskets.
Systembolaget increases the price
Last year we made 4.7 million day trips across the border and we shopped for NOK 1,981 on average on each trip, recent figures from Statistics Norway show. We spent NOK 4.0 billion on food and groceries and NOK 3.4 billion on soft drinks, sweets, alcohol, snuff and tobacco.
Many people are clearly learning that there are a few hundred Swedish kroner to be saved by filling the shopping cart in Sweden. In addition, there are probably many people who take this as a pleasant trip. And they should, because when you add the costs of the round-trip car journey into the calculation, it is not certain that the savings will be very large. Rather the opposite.
Loses money
ALCOHOL AND SNUFF: Last year we Norwegians made 4.7 million day trips to Sweden to shop. We spent NOK 4.0 billion on food and groceries and NOK 3.4 billion on soft drinks, sweets, alcohol, snuff and tobacco. Photo: Elisabeth Dalseg
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One expense on the trip is tolls. It is easy to deal with, because it is clearly visible on the bill you get when you get home. If you drive from Sandvika to Strømstad and home, it will cost you anything from NOK 51 (electric car with bomb chip) to NOK 264 (petrol car without bomb chip), according to Bompengekalukator.no.
This costs 6000
You can see the exact figures in the fact box further down in the case.
It is a few kroner cheaper if you drive from Hønefoss and go shopping in Charlottenberg, or from Orkanger and go shopping at Storlien. If you live in Narvik and are going up to Riksgränsen – a distance of only 84 kilometers round trip – it will cost you NOK 224 if you do not have a bomb chip, while you drive for free with an electric car with a bomb chip. Here, it is the tolls on the E6 Hålogalandsbrua that are expensive.
In other words, if you drive an electric car, you can save a few hundred Swedish kroner with a bomb chip in the car. This applies to all sections.
Expensive road trip
COZY TOUR: Many people take the Swedish tour as a cozy trip. It’s a good idea, because it’s probably the only way to get the calculation to go into the positive. The toll alone eats up a lot of the profit. Photo: Rune Korsvoll
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What not many people count on are the costs per kilometer driven. According to recent figures from the Road Traffic Information Council, it now costs you around nine kroner per kilometer to drive an average petrol car. Then everything from fuel to service, maintenance, insurance and loss of value is included.
NOK 3,000 difference
With an electric car, you drive a little cheaper, but it still costs you around NOK 7.40 per kilometer. Much of this, such as loss of value, are “hidden” costs and not so easy to spot during daily driving.
This means that the real price for driving 292 kilometers from Sandvika to Strømstad and back home with a petrol car with a fuel tag is NOK 2,628 in operating costs, plus NOK 106 in tolls. A total of NOK 2,734.
From Hønefoss to Charlottenberg in a similar car, it will cost you NOK 3,114 in operating costs, plus NOK 154 in tolls. A total of NOK 3,264. If you don’t have a bomb chip, it will be a little more expensive. If you drive an electric car, it will cost you around NOK 500 less.
