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Oslo police launch crime wave task force

Police in Oslo have launched a specialist street crime task force to combat the wave of street robberies and muggings which has swept the capital in recent months.

Published: 29 October 2013 09:35 CET

Oslo police launch crime wave task force

Roger Andresen at the press conference on Monday - Fredrik Varfjell / NTB Scanpix

"Oslo police will increase its visibility and the number of civilian patrols as a result of the crime wave," Roger Andresen, the deputy chief of police, said at a press conference on Monday afternoon.

He said that the police had also established an 18-strong street robbery task force, which had already begun clamping down on the problem.

Oslo police said they had seen an increase in street theft in the city over the last two months, with 103 cases in September and 99 so far in October.

By the end of the third quarter of this year, the police registered 728 robberies in Oslo, a 6.1 percent increase on the same period in 2012.

"From time to time, police experience increases in various types of crime, including street theft, without us being able to give any good reasons why," Andresen said.

Of the victims, 72 had been men and 26 women, with the thieves targeting mobile phones, and Apple products in particular.

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Potential bankruptcy threatens bus services in Oslo

Unibuss, which is wholly owned by Oslo Municipality, is in danger of going bust due to large losses, unpaid bills, and fines from public transport firm Ruter for issues with its electric bus fleet this winter.

Oslo City Council will hold an emergency meeting headed up by transport councilor Marit Vea on Wednesday, where she will be grilled on how the council will avert a collapse in the city’s public transport network should Unibuss go bankrupt.

Unibuss is comprised of four smaller companies that operate bus routes in Oslo on behalf of Ruter. The company has just over 370 buses in operation and covers around 60 to 70 percent of the routes in Oslo and the neighboring municipality of Bærum.

Oslo’s fleet of electric busses struggled especially with snow and cold temperatures this winter, which caused frequent chaos across the capital’s public transport network.

Snow, ice, range and charging issues for the busses lead to vehicle shortages which caused mass delays and cancellations several times over the winter.

Ruter, which is also part owned by Oslo municipality, believes that the financial problems facing Unibuss mean the company could be forced to file for bankruptcy or undergo a major restructuring, according to a memo obtained by publication Teknisk Ukeblad.

It has previously told public broadcaster that it was working on a plan in case Unibuss goes bankrupt.

“There is no doubt that the first days of such a scenario will be very demanding for the residents of Oslo and parts of Akershus,” Ruter’s communications director Elisabeth Skarsbø Moen told public broadcaster NRK.

“First and foremost, we are working to find a solution together with Unibuss that does not affect Ruter’s customers,” she said.

“But as those responsible for public transport, we have both a plan and an emergency organization ready to also handle a bankruptcy,” Skarsbø Moen added.

Should Unibuss go bankrupt, its buses would become part of the bankruptcy estate and if such an event were to occur while passengers were in transit, all passengers would need to disembark at the next stop so the buses can be transported to the depot.

Ruter said it had an eye on the market to try and see what could be available in terms of extra buses and equipment.

It said that its priority would be to ensure that school transport, and that healthcare workers could get to work, in the event of a sudden lack of buses.

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