Gaia Trafikk
Encyclopedia
Gaia Trafikk was the largest public transportation provider in Bergen and Os
, Norway until it merged with HSD forming Tide.
Gaia was formed by the 1998 merger of Pan Trafikk
, the bus company serving northern and southern Bergen, and Bergen Sporvei
, the company serving Bergen's inner city. The route network covered most of Bergen, but the western suburbs were serviced by Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap
(HSD). This resulted in a fixed fleet between the yellow buses of Bergen Sporvei and the red buses of Pan Trafikk being operated by the same company, and coordinated, making a more user-friendly bus system. The largest owners of Gaia was Bergen City Council (43.6%), HSB (7.9%), Yrkestrafikkforbundet (7.3%) and Os City Council (7.3%).
Among the fleet of about 300 buses are 8 trolleybus
es (two of them are dual-mode bus
es), making Bergen the only city in north-west Europe
to have them. Gaia fleet also contained 36 natural gas buses.
Gaia Trafikk is merged with HSD forming the company Tide
. The general assembly at HSD approved the merger on 29 June 2006, while the approval at Gaia came on 17 July 2006. The new company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange
. Both British Arriva
and the Norwegian Nettbuss
had announced a wish to buy Gaia, indicating a price around NOK
400 million.
Os, Hordaland
Os is a municipality in the county of Hordaland, Norway. Due to its proximity to Bergen, Os is experiencing strong population growth. -History:...
, Norway until it merged with HSD forming Tide.
Gaia was formed by the 1998 merger of Pan Trafikk
Pan Trafikk
Pan Trafikk was a Norwegian bus company operating in and around the city of Bergen. The company was created as a merger between Åsane Billag and Bilruta Fana–Os–Milde. The company had depots in Åsane, Fana, Os and Søreide...
, the bus company serving northern and southern Bergen, and Bergen Sporvei
Bergen Sporvei
Bergen Sporvei AS was a municipal owned public transport company that operated in Bergen, Norway from 1898 to 1998. The company operated both the Bergen Tramway, Bergen trolleybus and the yellow buses in Bergen.-History:...
, the company serving Bergen's inner city. The route network covered most of Bergen, but the western suburbs were serviced by Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap
Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap
Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap , founded in 1880, was one of Norway's largest privately held public transportation providers. Its bus operation HSD Buss AS was founded in 1999, and serviced 15 million passengers annually in large parts of western Norway, predominantly in Hordaland...
(HSD). This resulted in a fixed fleet between the yellow buses of Bergen Sporvei and the red buses of Pan Trafikk being operated by the same company, and coordinated, making a more user-friendly bus system. The largest owners of Gaia was Bergen City Council (43.6%), HSB (7.9%), Yrkestrafikkforbundet (7.3%) and Os City Council (7.3%).
Among the fleet of about 300 buses are 8 trolleybus
Trolleybus
A trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
es (two of them are dual-mode bus
Dual-mode bus
A dual-mode bus is a bus that can run independently on power from two different sources, typically electricity from overhead lines or batteries, alternated with conventional fossil fuel ....
es), making Bergen the only city in north-west Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to have them. Gaia fleet also contained 36 natural gas buses.
Gaia Trafikk is merged with HSD forming the company Tide
Tide (transportation company)
Tide ASA is a public transport company in Hordaland, Norway which resulted from the merger of Gaia Trafikk and Hardanger Sunnhordlandske Dampskipsselskap . The company provides the public transit network in the city of Bergen, and most of the bus service in Hordaland...
. The general assembly at HSD approved the merger on 29 June 2006, while the approval at Gaia came on 17 July 2006. The new company is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange
Oslo Stock Exchange
The Oslo Stock Exchange serves as the main market for trading in the shares of Norwegian companies. It opens at 9:00am and closes 5:30pm local time...
. Both British Arriva
Arriva
Arriva plc is a multinational public transport company owned by Deutsche Bahn and headquartered in Sunderland, United Kingdom. It has bus, coach, train, tram and waterbus operations in 12 countries across Europe, employs more than 47,500 people and services over 1.5 billion passenger journeys each...
and the Norwegian Nettbuss
Nettbuss
Nettbuss AS is the largest bus company in Norway owned by the Norwegian State Railways . It was until 2000 known as NSB Biltrafikk. The company has 14 operating subsidiaries throughout Norway and in Denmark and Sweden....
had announced a wish to buy Gaia, indicating a price around NOK
Norwegian krone
The krone is the currency of Norway and its dependent territories. The plural form is kroner . It is subdivided into 100 øre. The ISO 4217 code is NOK, although the common local abbreviation is kr. The name translates into English as "crown"...
400 million.