Denmark's Toll Transition: Analyzing the Financial Implications for Shippers and Carriers
As of January 1st, Denmark has transitioned its road charging system, shifting from the traditional time-based Eurovignette to a distance-based model. This new approach aligns with EU`s environmental goals by incorporating CO2 emissions into its pricing structure. The system affects trucks over 12 tons and spans roughly 10,900 km of roads, encompassing most major transport routes. The Danish government aims to eventually extend this system to the entire road network and include vehicles over 3.5 tons. Notably, existing toll sections like Storebælt Bridge maintain their separate fee structure and won’t be supplemented.
The pricing mechanism is elegantly simple yet impactful: most vehicles fall under emission class 1, paying 1.10 DKK (0.147€) per kilometer. Even vehicles meeting higher emission standards (class 2) see only a minor reduction to 0.135€, clearly signaling Denmark's commitment to zero emission transportation (class 5, 0.13 DKK = 0.017€). While additional charges apply in urban low-emission zones, these rarely affect international transit routes.
The following map illustrates two contrasting scenarios within Denmark: one with almost maximum toll exposure and another reflecting typical route costs.
Source: Trimble Maps / Transporeon data / Vejafgifter.dk
The financial impact varies significantly by transport type. Domestic routes face the most substantial changes, with market prices expected to rise between 4 to 7% if carriers manage to pass on the new costs. (The table above contains the calculation and impact of these exemplary routes). Shorter routes naturally see less impact on their overall costs.
Cross-border and transit transportation presents a more nuanced picture, as illustrated by these three routes: one import from Germany and two transit paths, each with alternative routes options (dotted lines)
