Trains are often late at one in two Finnish stations

Coastal line from Helsinki to Turku had fewest delays in 2008

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Let’s go to Espoo by train!
      The architecture of the buildings surrounding the Espoo railway station - some 20 kilometres from the centre of Helsinki - is quite hideous, more GDR-like than anywhere in the former East Germany today.
      Nevertheless, there's a silver lining: the trains run almost like the fabled Swiss clockwork.
     
The ”punctuality percentage” of the Espoo station in 2008 was 94%, which is among the best in Finland.
      It means that the stopping of trains at the station hardly ever causes any delay in the schedule.
      The goal set by the Finnish Rail Administration (RHK) is 90%, which means that one in ten trains ”may” run late.
      In total, the coastal line between Helsinki and Turku managed quite well in the punctuality comparison. Even in Kirkkonummi, Karjaa, Hanko, Salo, and Turku, the trains run seldom behind schedule.
     
Early in the afternoon, the number of commuters is low.
      16-year old Laura Karhunen and her friend are waiting for a U train for Kirkkonummi, which is to depart from the Espoo railway station at 13:03.
      The girls go to school in Espoo’s district of Leppävaara, but on their way home they have stopped at the Espoo centre for some shopping.
      The girls became commuters, as they were not admitted into the upper secondary school in Kirkkonummi where they actually live.
      They decided to go to another school in Leppävaara instead.
      In the morning, the girls travel on the U train that departs from Kirkkonummi at 7.32 a.m., arriving in Leppävaara at 8.05. The train is hardly ever late. The longest time the girls have had to wait on the platform occurred in November during a decent-sized blizzard. Then they had to wait for the train for half an hour.
      ”Usually delays occur only if an express train has left from Helsinki behind schedule”, the girls note.
      According to Senior Officer Heli Mattila, who carried out the 2008 survey on punctuality in long distance and commuter traffic at RHK, the coastal railway line previously used to suffer from thunderstorms.
      However, thanks to the new surge suppressors, the trains now stay on schedule.
     
More than half of Finnish railway stations failed to reach the punctuality goal of 90 per cent.
      At some of the busiest stations, including Tikkurila, Turku, Riihimäki, and Hämeenlinna, the goal was reached, while for example Helsinki, Tampere, and Kuopio fell well short of achieving the 90% target.
     
The delays at stations are mainly caused by the fact that the trains have to wait for passengers from other trains. The largest number of delays (in actual numbers) occur in Tampere, one of the most important rail traffic nodes in the country.
      In Helsinki, the delays were mostly due to the restricted railway yard, defective rolling stock, and malfunctions in traffic control systems.
      Moreover, snow caused some delays in the capital, even though there were just a few days with snowfalls in 2008.
     
In addition, in Seinäjoki, Pieksämäki, Riihimäki, and Parikkala the punctuality percentage was too low.
      In Kouvola the reason for delays in 2008 was related to the Pendolino high-speed trains’ problems in the network connection, which have since been resolved.
      At the Parkano railway station, the delays were caused by rail maintenance work, and the punctuality figure was only 80 per cent.
     
The lowest punctuality percentages were found at the Jämsä (75%) and Vainikkala (72%) railway stations.
      In Jämsä, the delays reflect the problems besetting the entire Tampere-Jämsä track section, including malfunction of traffic control systems and safety devices, as well as rail maintenance work.
      In Vainikkala, one reason for delays lies in the border crossing formalities.
      However, a number of reasons can also be found entirely on the Finnish side of the border.
      The maintenance work carried out on the Lahti-Luumäki track in 2008 delayed the trains on the whole track section, particularly at the end of the year.
      The problems on the Luumäki track were seen particularly in Lappeenranta and Kouvola, where trains often arrived behind schedule.


Links:
  Finnish Rail Administration (RHK): Punctuality in long distance and commuter traffic (updated 21.4.2009)

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