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New Train Service Reconnects Finland and Sweden After Decades

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A new passenger train service has restored a rail connection between Finland and Sweden for the first time in nearly 40 years. The twice-daily service runs between Finland’s coastal city of Oulu and Haparanda in Sweden, with the inaugural train crossing the Torne River on Monday. The arrival in Haparanda was welcomed by crowds waving Finnish and Swedish flags.

The route was suspended in the late 1980s and early 1990s because of low passenger numbers and differences in railway track widths. Finland uses a wider track gauge, inherited from its history as part of the Russian Empire, while most of Europe uses a narrower standard gauge. The new journey takes around 100 minutes, although passengers heading further into Sweden must change trains at Haparanda.

The restored connection could strengthen rail travel across northern Europe and make longer journeys more accessible. It also opens the possibility of travelling by train for around 5,000km from Portugal’s Algarve region to Finland’s northernmost railway station at Kolari. A rail journey between Helsinki and Stockholm could also now be completed in about 24 hours, highlighting renewed interest in cross-border rail travel.

Pic courtesy: google/ images are subject to copyright

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Eurotunnel Le Shuttle: Passengers stuck for hours inside Channel Tunnel

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After what looked to be a train breakdown on the Calais to Folkestone route, many of passengers were left trapped for several hours within the Channel Tunnel. Footage showing passengers of the Eurotunnel Le Shuttle leaving their vehicles and entering an emergency service tunnel has surfaced.

Eventually, they were put on a different train and sent to the Kent terminal at Folkestone. According to a Eurotunnel official, operations are again back to normal. Le Shuttle claimed that the situation on Tuesday night started when the train’s sirens went off and that this needed to be looked into.

According to a spokeswoman, these occurrences are uncommon but not extraordinary and much more often on trains carrying vehicles than private cars.

“The Shuttle was inspected after being brought to a controlled stop. We moved the people on board to another shuttle via the service tunnel [which is there for exactly that purpose] as a preventative measure for their safety and comfort “added the spokeswoman.

We took them to the passenger terminal building, where there was food and beverage service. The passengers’ automobiles were then given back to them at Folkestone, he continued, and the original train was “slowly pulled out” of the tunnel.

To address the incident-related backlog, four extra trains were added from Calais to Folkestone overnight. Between Folkestone and Calais, the service provides transportation for both people and their automobiles.

It has the longest underwater portion of any tunnel in the world, measuring 23.5 miles (37.9 km). Le Shuttle promised to get in touch with each passenger directly to set up reimbursement.

Picture Courtesy: Google/images are subject to copyright