New train timetables with more runs and routes will come into effect on December 11 in Finland. Tickets for the new travel options are already on sale. The state-owned railway operator VR says railway connections will improve considerably throughout the country as a result.
A total of 239 more runs will begin weekly, in line with a requirement from the transport ministry, as the state prepares for partial privatization of the national railway service after December 2017. At present, VR’s share of commercial traffic in Finland is 44 percent of all train services.
The additions in the meantime will improve both long-distance and local train connections. The update will add dozens of new runs and shorten some travelling times.
Starting in December 2016, there will be new runs and stops, per customer request, on several routes. For example, the Lahti-Riihimäki railway connection will resume running every hour, doubling the service to the area. Likewise, the route between Tampere and Keuruu will see a boost in service.
Business is picking up
Some trains will also be quicker as a result of the new service push. The route connecting Helsinki with northwest Oulu will be a half-hour faster in future, meaning that the express train will make the trip in less than five and a half hours. In the north, many connections will be made quicker as work on the Pohjamaa track reaches completion.
In southern Finland, 159 runs will be added per week on commuter and regional routes, with 80 weekly additions planned for the southern long-distance connections.
VR has stepped up its activities this year. They have reduced train ticket prices and accelerated travel times on principal routes. The company believes that these measures have caused a seven-percent increase in the amount of commercial travellers in the first nine months of 2016, when compared to numbers from the year previous.
The railway routes attracting the most new passengers include connections between Helsinki and the cities of Seinäjoki, Jyväskylä and Tampere. The company calculates that on the country’s main train routes, passenger capacity levels have improved by over 40 percent.