Odda is a town and administration center in Ullensvang
municipality in Vestland county in Norway. The city is located in
the innermost part of Sørfjorden in Hardanger, and has 4,840
inhabitants as of 1 January 2020. Odda was the administrative center
in Odda municipality, which on 1 January 2020 was merged with Jondal
and Ullensvang to form the new Ullensvang municipality.
The
industrial heritage in Odda-Tyssedal was entered in 2009 on Norway's
tentative list for the UNESCO World Heritage List, together with the
Rjukan – Notodden industrial heritage.
Public services
Odda Hospital is a local hospital for the
municipalities of Eidfjord, Jondal, Odda and Ullensvang.
Odda
upper secondary school offers both vocational and study
specialization educations.
Business
Odda is known as an
industrial site, with companies such as Odda Smelter, Boliden Odda
(formerly Norzink) and Tinfos Titan & Iron (TTI).
Transport
To the east, Hardanger and Odda have since 1968 had a year-round
connection to Eastern Norway via Haukelifjell on the E134, and to
the southwest over Skare and then down to Åkrafjorden out to
Haugesund on the E134 and on to Stavanger on the E39. Towards Bergen
has been slimmer, albeit with the two alternatives over Kvamskogen
or Voss, in both cases out Sørfjorden, then either ferry
Kinsarvik-Utne-Kvanndal and further on Rv7 over Kvamskogen, or ferry
Brimnes – Bruravik and further on Rv13 to Voss and so on on E16.
In recent decades, however, there has been a rapid development
in terms of long-distance transport in Hardanger, and after the
Hardanger Bridge opens in August 2013, there will also be a
ferry-free alternative to Bergen and outer Hordaland. Based in Odda,
there will then be the following three route choices for a trip to
Bergen:
Odda – Mauranger – Jondal – Kvamskogen – Bergen: 133 km,
Odda – Utne – Kvamskogen – Bergen: 165 km,
Odda – Hardangerbrua –
Voss – Bergen: 190 km,
According to this calculation, the
fastest route will still be over the Hardanger Bridge, since ferry
waiting and crossing take time.