This summer, Denmark and Sweden, both noted for their addiction to bicycles, will get a new connection: A ferry across the Oresund strait from just outside Copenhagen to just outside Malmo, Sweden.
The ferry, a converted 1940 cargo boat, will carry 36 bikes and riders on a route paralleling the Oresund bridge. It marks the return of ferries to the route for the first time since car-ferry service ended when the bridge opened in 2000.
The two terminals are Dragor, Denmark, and the beach town of Limmamn, Sweden. The trip will take about one hour. Bikes can only cross the bridge on trains, with riders paying an extra, but reduced, fare for the bicycle.
The service was originally planned to launch last summer, but a suitable boat was not found in time. But now, the M/S Elefanten will start trial runs for three months in the summer, with possible additional service if it proves popular.
Photo: Bicycle ferry between Budenheim and Walluf near Wiesbaden in Germany (Hermann Luyken/Wikimedia)
