Train travel between Finland and Sweden could begin in August, says Traficom

Passenger train service between Oulu, Finland, and Haparanda, Sweden, could start on August 10, Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) director Pipsa Eklund told Yle.

Eklund said the target date is being pursued but the purchase-of-service contract between Traficom and state railway company VR has not yet been signed. Details related to the contract and border crossing are still being resolved.

According to an initial schedule, 15 weekly services would run between Oulu and Haparanda. Eklund said the final number of trips is still being adjusted to fit the budget.

Funding for the Oulu-Haparanda service comes from Traficom, the Meri-Lappi development centre, the city of Oulu and municipalities in the Meri-Lappi region. Funding agreements are pending approval from the municipalities.

The service was originally planned to start in June, but the cross-border element brought bureaucratic surprises that needed to be solved first, said Tornio city manager Jukka Kujala. “It’s a small disappointment—it would have been nice to have the connection for the summer holiday season,” he said, adding that tourism in Tornio and Haparanda is steady year-round and interest in the train service remains.

Since March, the city of Tornio has funded a bus connection between Haparanda’s travel centre and Kemi railway station, operated by a carrier covering the leg between the Tornio-Haparanda border travel centre and Haparanda station. Before that, no public transport from the Tornio area served all trains arriving and departing Kemi.

Tornio procurement manager Sari Backman said ridership on the bus rose sharply in April to 380 passengers, up from nearly 100 fewer in March. The first morning and last evening service have had only one or two passengers, and one of those trips may be removed, Backman said. The bus will run until the passenger train service between Oulu and Haparanda begins.