Rail operator VR promises to improve punctuality and information

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Passengers on Finnish trains, particularly those commuting to work in Helsinki from homes along the main line northwards, are not happy creatures these days. Delays and cancellations this autumn have produced a spate of complaints about the poor service. Now both VR - which is responsible for rail services - and the Finnish Rail Administration (RHK) that manages Finland's rail network have promised to take action to improve their services in order to make the traffic more punctual.
      According to President and CEO Henri Kuitunen of the VR Group, attempts will be made to upgrade the rolling stock, particularly the punctuality of the high-speed Pendolinos. Of late the reliability of these Italian-built units has become something of a talking-point, and even a bad joke for VR customers.
      Furthermore, communication between the rail operator and the passengers will be increased. As a consequence an official among the personnel working at the traffic control will be given the sole responsibility for communications. Hitherto, passengers have grumbled that not only have they been left to wait on cold platforms, but that they have been given little or no notification of delays or cancellations.
     
The Finnish Rail Administration is to focus on tracing potential technical failures in safety equipment, which have caused disturbances particularly on the rail lines between Helsinki and Turku, as well as between Tampere and Jyväskylä.
      CEO Kuitunen from VR and Director Kari Ruohonen of RHK's Investment Department presented their action plan on Tuesday to Minister of Transport and Communications Susanna Huovinen (SDP), who had expressed a wish to discuss urgently the issue of problematic train services with the representatives of VR and RHK.
     
After the meeting, Minister Huovinen commented that VR could have been a more proactive in communicating with passengers during the first blizzard of the autumn.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  More residents of Helsinki region commute to jobs outside urban area (13.11.2006)
  Disturbances in Helsinki commuter train traffic anger passengers (8.11.2006)

Links:
  VR website
  The Finnish Rail Administration (RHK)

Helsingin Sanomat