The popularity of domestic long-distance train services growing - 1.3 million journeys were made in July

In January-July 2024, the number of journeys increased by 2% year-on-year. More and more people are choosing trains, especially for leisure trips, but now everyday commuting has also grown in popularity. Approximately 1.3 million train journeys were made in July, which is about 4% less than in the comparison period. The decrease in the number of journeys is due to track work carried out by the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency on the coastal railway, which caused a break of over five weeks in rail traffic in the direction of Turku. On all other routes, the number of trips increased slightly. Quay services and information during the trip were praised in the post-trip customer survey, with the Net Promoter Score (NPS) in July being 49 (46 in the comparison period). The occupancy rate of customer seats on long-distance trains was 53% in July, as in the comparison period the previous year. 

"The passenger load factor of long-distance trains in January-July was 47%, which means that there is plenty of space on the trains outside rush hours and public holidays. There is still room for night trains in the autumn, and during the autumn holidays, you can easily take the train north to admire the splendor of natural colors offered by the autumn season. The train takes you directly to, for example, Rovaniemi or Kemijärvi, which have good connections to national parks," says Elisa Markula, CEO of VR. 

VR Transpoint's rail transport volumes in July were approximately 2.3 million tonnes, which is 29% more than last year. In January-July 2024, approximately 13.9 million tonnes of goods were transported by rail, which is about 5% less than in the corresponding period the year before. In the early part of the year, volumes were significantly weighed down by political industrial action and difficult winter conditions. The recovered demand in the forest industry has had a positive impact on the volume of rail transports. 

Track works and speed limits as reasons for delays  

Punctuality of trains is a key factor in passenger satisfaction. In summer, there are plenty of speed limits on railways due to track work, for example. Speed limits cause delays, which are multiplied on transfer connections. In July, the punctuality of long-distance trains was 85%, when punctuality is measured with an accuracy of five minutes. Half of the delays (50%) were due to track-related reasons, such as speed limits or gear and electrical faults. The Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency is responsible for the condition and maintenance of the track. Around one-fifth (22%) of the delays were caused by VR and the rest (28%) by other reasons, such as vandalism. 

In VR's commuter services, punctuality in July was 97%. Of the delays, 39% were due to reasons related to the track, 47% to other reasons and 14% to VR.