World City Guide

Getting There By Road

Motorways are designated by the letter ‘E’ followed by two digits, main roads by two digits on a yellow background and minor roads by three digits on a white background. The speed limit is 110kph (68mph) on motorways, 80kph (50mph) on main roads and 50kph (31mph) in urban areas. Drivers must keep their headlights switched on at all times during the day. Drivers and front-seat passengers must wear seatbelts. The maximum legal alcohol to blood ratio is 0.05%.

An International Driving Permit is not required but may be preferable if the national driving licence is not in English. Although not necessary, Green Card insurance is recommended. The legal driving age in Denmark is 18 years.

The Danish Road Directorate operates a Traffic Information Centre (tel: 7010 1040) offering traffic information 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Emergency breakdown service: Dansk Autohjælp A/S 7010 8090

Routes to the city: Highway E20 (with a connection to E45) crosses Denmark from west to east and intersects with E47 and E55 to the southwest of Copenhagen. The E47 runs south to Rødbyhavn, with ferry connections to Germany. The toll bridge across the Store Bælt between Sjælland and Fyn charges Dkk200 for cars. The construction of the Øresund 16km (10-mile) bridge and tunnel complex, between Sjælland in Denmark and Scania in Sweden, was completed in 2000. It costs Dkk125 to cross the bridge. Odense is located in Fyn, on the E20, connecting with the E45 highway in Jylland, which travels north to Århus and Aalborg.

Approximate driving times to Copenhagen: From Odense – 1 hour 30 minutes; Århus – 3 hours; Aalborg – 3 hours 40 minutes; Malmö – 40 minutes.

Coach services: The coach station is located in front of the Sofitel Plaza Hotel, Bernstorffgade. Eurolines Scandinavia, Reventlowsgade 8 (tel: 3388 7000; website: www.eurolines.dk) operates bus services with connections to more than 500 towns and cities in Europe, among them big cities like Berlin, Frankfurt, Vienna, Hamburg, Paris, Munich and London.

Bus company Abildskou A/S (tel: 7021 0888; website: www.abildskou.dk) runs services from Aalborg and Århus to Copenhagen. Fjerritslev-København (tel: 7010 0033) links the capital with various destinations in Jutland. Aalborg buses are operated by Thinggaard Rutebiler (tel: 7010 0030). Bus tickets often include the price of ferry crossings, where applicable.