🏙️🚆 Commuting from Drammen, Asker and Lillestrøm: living outside Oslo, working in the city

If you want more space and quiet, but need to travel to the city centre for meetings 2–4 times a week, this guide will help you choose a ‘satellite’ and calculate your commute: zones and tickets, typical travel times, where to store your bike, how to adjust your schedule for rush hour and roadworks.

⚖️ Who is this for — ‘housing costs vs. travel time’

• Hybrid and infrequent office days. With 2–3 trips to the office per week, it makes sense to look at Asker/Sandvika (short) and Lillestrøm (the fastest corridor). Drammen offers more space for the same price, but the commute is slightly longer.
• Tickets. Within Oslo+Akershus (including Lillestrøm and Asker/Sandvika), Ruter tickets are also valid on Vy trains in the relevant zones. For Drammen (Buskerud), Ruter tickets are not valid on Vy trains: buy a ticket/travel card from Vy/Entur.

⏱️ Routes and travel times (overview)

Zones for reference.

• Asker/Sandvika — 2V; Lillestrøm — 2Ø; Drammen — 5V. All metro lines are in zone 1. See the zone map at Ruter.

Drammen ↔ Oslo.

• Vy train ≈ 32–36 min to Oslo S/Nationaltheatret; frequency approximately every 15–20 minutes on weekdays. Ruter tickets do not cover the section in Buskerud — buy from Vy/Entur.

Asker / Sandvika ↔ Oslo.

• Asker–Oslo S ≈ 22 min, departures ~every 10 minutes (local L1 + RE/RX). Sandvika–centre ≈ 12–16 min. During peak hours, some express trains run non-stop — faster than L1.

Lillestrøm ↔ Oslo.

• The fastest route: ≈10–12 min to Oslo S, frequent departures.

Where to find exact train times for specific dates.

Timetables and PDF schedules are available from Vy and Ruter; status updates and changes are posted on their websites.

📅 Commuting tips — rush hours, repairs and ‘fast windows’

• Peak times: weekdays 07:00–09:00 and 15:30–17:30. If possible, shift your departure by ±30–40 minutes. RE/RX express trains on the west–centre/east–centre corridors usually beat local L1 trains.
• Summer and repairs: in 2025, there were seasonal works with bus replacements; from 11 August 2025, service to/from Drammen has resumed. Always check ‘Engineering works/Sommerkutt’ for specific travel dates.
• Tickets and zones: Ruter travel cards are valid on Vy trains in Oslo and Akershus; additional zones can be purchased for infrequent trips outside your zone directly in the Ruter app. For Drammen, a separate Vy ticket is required.

🚲 rain + bike — where to leave your bike at the station

• Sykkelhotell from Bane NOR — enclosed bike parking at stations. Access via the Bane NOR Parkering app, 50 NOK for 30 days per station.
• Lillestrøm: two bike hotels (Bysiden/Messesiden), 24/7, hundreds of spaces and sockets for e-bikes.
• Drammen: bike hotel with 244 spaces + open racks, Bikely racks available.
• Asker: bike hotel at the 1st track, ~304 spaces, access via the app.
  

📝 Mini checklist for choosing a suburban scenario

• Check the zones of your home and office addresses on the Ruter map.
• Decide on tickets: Ruter (Asker/Sandvika/Lillestrøm) or Vy/Entur (Drammen).
• Check travel times and express trains on Vy / Ruter for your days and times.
• If you are travelling with a bicycle, connect Bane NOR Parkering for sykkelhotell in advance.
• For a week with frequent trips, consider a 7-day or 30-day pass (see the app for zones/prices).

For remote workers with 2–4 office days per week, Asker/Sandvika and Lillestrøm offer the shortest commute; Drammen — more space and a sustainable rail connection for the price of a single Vy ticket. Check the zones, choose a ticket that suits your schedule, and add a bike hotel near the station — this takes the hassle out of even the busiest days.