The bridge–tunnel complex serves the municipalities of Herøy, Sande, Ulstein, Hareid, Ørsta, and Volda, which together have over 40,000 inhabitants.

The Eiksund Tunnel begins at the south end of the bridge (on Eika island) goes under the Vartdalsfjorden and connects to the mainland near the village of Ørsta.

The tunnel was originally intended to be opened to the public in July 2007,[2] but numerous delays pushed the date back to December 2007 and then eventually to 2008.

Prior to construction the average daily traffic through the Eiksund Tunnel was projected to be 1,000 vehicles per day (VPD).

When the tunnel was fully financed after six years and became toll-free, traffic jumped again to 2880 VPD.