Škoda presents new sleepers for Finnish Railways
With their hotel-like comfort, the new cars will offer an alternative to traveling by car.
Škoda Group has presented the first visualizations of new sleeping cars for the Finnish state railways VR Group. The winner of a EUR 50 million competition, Finnish company Škoda Transtech, was announced in late 2022. The contract for nine sleeper cars includes the delivery of eight car carriers.
The new vehicles will enter service in late 2025 and complement VR Group’s existing night train fleet. The contract includes an option for an additional 30 sleepers and 30 car carriers.
VR launched a tender for the night train cars in July 2022. According to VR Vice President Topi Simola, this is in response to growing passenger demand. The company is considering using the sleepers for connections to Sweden. VR has 80 coaches in its fleet: newer green-and-white double-deckers from Transtech (now Škoda Transtech) and classic sleepers from the 1990s. The company owns 33 car carriers.
Hotel-like service
The cabins are designed to resemble hotel rooms so that passengers can work and rest comfortably during the trip. All cabins are equipped with toilets and some even have private showers. Families with children can use special family cabins that can accommodate a baby crib. In addition to comfort, special attention has been paid to soundproofing the cabins so that passengers can enjoy the ride.
The coaches will be used on existing night routes from Helsinki, Turku, and Tampere to Oulu, Rovaniemi, Kemijärvi, and Kolari. The sleeping cars will be complemented by car carriers, which will allow passengers to transport their cars at the same time.
As a member of Škoda Group, Transtech won another order for a Finnish operator in 2019. It will produce double-decker dining cars.
Edited and translated by Lucie Trávníčková