Kristiansund Mainland Connection
Template:Short description Template:Infobox highway system
The Kristiansund Mainland Connection (Template:Langx or abbreviated Krifast) is a road system consisting of the European route E39 highway and Norwegian National Road 70 that connects Kristiansund Municipality to the neighboring islands of Frei, Bergsøya, and Aspøya and then to the mainland of Norway. Krifast opened in 1992 and consists of Template:Convert of road and Template:Convert of bicycle paths. The three main structures are the undersea Freifjord Tunnel, the Gjemnessund Bridge, and the Bergsøysund Bridge.<ref name="snl">Template:Cite SNL</ref> The Straumsund Bridge is also part of the network.
A total of seven bridges are part of the Krifast system, the most famous one being the suspension bridge Gjemnessund Bridge from the island of Bergsøya to the mainland of Gjemnes Municipality, with Template:Convert high towers and a span between them of Template:Convert. There is also the Template:Convert long pontoon bridge called the Bergsøysund Bridge which goes between the islands of Bergsøya and Aspøya, which is the only bridge of its kind where nothing but the ends are anchored to solid rock. The bridge is supported by 7 pontoons, floating on a Template:Convert deep fjord.
The Template:Convert long underwater Freifjord Tunnel goes under the Freifjorden. It is reaches a depth of Template:Convert below sea level at its deepest point, though the bottom Template:Convert of the tunnel is in solid rock. A drive through the tunnel takes about 5 minutes. Because of the relatively steep climb, there are three lanes at each end, but only two at the bottom.
Krifast was authorized by the Norwegian Parliament and construction began in October 1988. The government pledged to finance 39% of the expenses, the rest were to be taken in as toll on road traffic and car ferry fares (on the ferries to be discontinued due to the new tunnel and bridges). As of July 1991, the project employed 427 people, and spent Template:NOK daily on construction. Four years and NOK 1.1 billion later, in August 1992, Krifast was opened for regular traffic.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>