Worst train punctuality in nearly 15 years • Went from “train person” to “bus person”
In 2024, train punctuality in Sweden was the worst since 2010.
Garry Jones has been traveling between Stockholm and Dalarna weekly since the 80s. He believes that punctuality is worse than ever, and has therefore switched trains to buses.
– All my life I have been a train person, but now I am a bus person.
According to the Swedish Transport Administration, the reasons for the delays are track running and increased maintenance work, but also that the volume of traffic has increased by 40 percent since 2010. In addition, the weather prevented it on several occasions during 2024, the authority states.
Garry Jones works in Stockholm and lives in Dalarna. Every week he makes the trip from Mora to the capital. After missing assignments at work due to delays, he made the decision to switch trains to buses.
– It always feels like a safe bet to choose the bus, says Garry, who now makes the trip between Stockholm and Dalarna with the so-called Masexpressen.
“Deplorable”
Garry Jones has lived in Sweden since the end of the 80s. He had his first job in Sweden at SJ.
– It could be a very difficult winter and much more snow than we have today. The temperatures in Dalarna were minus 30 degrees every winter and all trains arrived on time. It was very rarely a problem at the time, he says.
Garry is surprised that 2024 is only the worst year for rail punctuality since 2010.
– I have ridden this line between Dalarna and Stockholm since the 80s and it is worse now than I can ever remember.
What do you think of the train service today?
– It is deplorable. All small companies, here and there, you buy a ticket from SJ but it is split into different companies and you are not entitled to travel compensation from SJ if it is another operator on the line. So you have to negotiate with different operators when there are delays and canceled trains.
The traveller: First state railway network
Garry states that he has accepted the situation as it is, and that he has adapted to avoid train travel as much as possible.
– The few times I go by train, I always have in the back of my mind “will this train go?”
He believes the solution to the problems is to nationalize the railway network again.
– But even if they were to fix it, I’ve now got used to the bus so I don’t know if I’d go back to taking the train, says Garry and adds:
– All my life I have been a train person, but now I am a bus person.