VR to buy 20 new double-deck cars

National Railway operator VR decided to buy 20 new double-deck cars for Intercity trains at a cost of EUR 50 million, said an official press release.

The VR authority is going to purchase the double-deck cars from Transtech’s rail vehicle factory in Kajaani following the increasing number of travelers.

One car has 113 seats, so the acquisition will provide trains with almost 2,300 additional seats.

The new cars will enter service during 2019 and will be directed specifically to the most popular long-distance services.

“We make growth in rail traffic possible also in the future by investing significantly in additional capacity. The current rail infrastructure does not make it possible to increase the number of services during peak hours, but we can still increase the capacity of the existing trains,” said Maisa Romanainen, Senior Vice President of Passenger Services of VR.

A total of 1,700 additional seats were last obtained in rail traffic this summer with the introduction of the IC steering cars. It is now possible to operate commercial routes at the speed on 200km/h when the condition of the rail network allows it. Uniform rolling stock can be used efficiently in the entire rail network.

In addition to this order, to increase passenger comfort, VR is currently carrying out renewal of the interiors and the concepts of restaurant and Extra Class cars. A total of 219 IC cars and 17 Pendolinos operating 159 daily services are used in the fast domestic long-distance traffic.

“VR’s rolling stock order has a considerable effect on employment in our factory,” said Lasse Orre, Managing Director of Transtech Oy.

The employment effect of the acquisition is about 150 man-years. The production of the new cars will begin during next year.