About 1.3 million journeys were made in VR’s long-distance traffic in September – an increase of 7% compared to last year
10. October 2023 Press releases
In September, the number of long-distance journeys was about 7% higher than in September 2022. The main reason for this increase is the growth in travel on weekdays. In addition to commuting and business travel, leisure travel on weekdays was also on the rise.
“Our customer experience improved in September, and we were especially praised for cleanliness, communication during the journey and the wireless network on board our trains that we are currently upgrading. The functionality of the wireless network has a big impact on our customer experience, and developing it together with operators is important to us. The installations of the new network are expected to be completed in the summer of 2024,” says Elisa Markula, the CEO of VR.
The transport volumes of VR Transpoint’s railway transport amounted to 1.6 million tonnes in September. The volumes decreased by 33% year-on-year due to the end of Eastern traffic and the downturn in the industrial sector. In January–September this year, 17.2 (22.4) million tonnes of goods were transported by rail, which is about 23% less than in the previous year.
Most of the delays in September were less than 10 minutes
The punctuality of long-distance traffic was 85.9% in September. The causes of delays were divided among track-related causes (58%), other causes (25%) and VR-related causes (17%), which had to do with, for example, rolling stock. The punctuality of long-distance traffic was particularly decreased by temporary speed limits due to track maintenance work and rail infrastructure disruptions, especially on the Coastal Railway and in the areas north of Tampere.
The punctuality of VR’s commuter traffic was 97.5% in September. The causes of delays were divided among track-related causes (57%), other causes (32%) and VR-related causes (11%).
