Published on October 20, 2025
Swedish location carrier authority Mälardalstrafik has awarded Finnish nationalist obstruction usability VR an eight-year statement to negociate and run nan Mälartåg commuter services successful nan Stockholm and Mälaren region. Set to statesman successful December 2026, this statement offers VR nan opportunity to build connected its increasing beingness successful Sweden’s competitory obstruction market. It besides includes an action for extension, reflecting Mälardalstrafik’s assurance successful VR’s expertise to present value work complete nan agelong term.
Boosting Commuter Services Across a Busy Region
The Mälartåg network, 1 of Sweden’s busiest commuter lines, serves nan Stockholm region, which is location to much than 40% of nan country’s population. The web covers complete 1,000 kilometers of way crossed 5 routes and 44 stations, providing captious connections for complete 15 cardinal passengers annually. Currently, nan fleet consists of 62 trains, but to meet increasing demand, Mälardalstrafik has announced plans to grow nan web further.
As portion of nan caller agreement, leasing institution AB Transitio will lease an further 13 Stadler Kiss four-car double-deck trains, expanding nan Mälartåg fleet to 53 vehicles by 2028. These caller trains will supply further capacity and let for much predominant and businesslike services. The fleet description comes arsenic nan Stockholm region continues to acquisition accelerated organization growth, making it imperative to amended nationalist carrier options to accommodate nan accrued commuter demand. Alongside nan Stadler Kiss trains, nan web besides includes 9 Bombardier Regina EMUs.
Comprehensive Services for Mälartåg
The VR statement will screen each aspects of nan Mälartåg service, including nan recruitment and guidance of train personnel, regular postulation operations, maintenance, and incident response. This broad attack is designed to amended nan value and reliability of services crossed nan network. The Mälartåg strategy is cardinal to Sweden’s proscription infrastructure, and nan caller statement represents a important committedness to ensuring its continued success.
Currently, Transdev is operating Mälartåg services nether a impermanent statement that began successful June 2024, aft nan termination of MTR Nordic’s contract, which had started successful December 2021. VR’s successful bid was recognized for its attraction connected work excellence, arsenic good arsenic its customer-oriented improvement approach, which aligns pinch its semipermanent strategy of profitable maturation successful competitory obstruction markets.
VR’s Growing Presence successful Sweden
VR’s description into Sweden began successful 2022, and since then, nan institution has go nan country’s second-largest obstruction usability aft SJ. In summation to its caller Mälartåg role, VR operates suburban services successful nan Stockholm area, ray obstruction systems, and location trains crossed confederate and eastbound Sweden, arsenic good arsenic successful nan Bergslagen region. Additionally, nan institution runs nan erstwhile MTR open-access work betwixt Stockholm and Gothenburg nether nan VR Snabbtåg brand. By 2025, VR is group to return complete nan Norrtåg services successful bluish Sweden and nan Øresund services, which link Sweden pinch Denmark.
Elisa Markula, CEO of VR, expressed pridefulness successful nan company’s continued growth, peculiarly successful Sweden. She noted that winning nan Mälartåg statement is simply a beardown parameter of VR’s increasing estimation for value work and its expertise to meet nan needs of Swedish commuters.
Long-Term Vision for Swedish Rail
The determination to grant VR nan Mälartåg contract, which will return effect erstwhile nan entreaty play ends, is portion of nan Swedish government’s broader efforts to amended and grow its nationalist proscription systems. The statement reinforces nan company’s position arsenic a beardown subordinate successful Sweden’s obstruction industry, further solidifying its beingness successful nan Scandinavian market.
As nan request for efficient, environmentally friends proscription options continues to turn successful nan Stockholm region, this caller statement will alteration VR to thief style nan early of Sweden’s commuter obstruction system, ensuring that nan Mälartåg web remains a reliable and sustainable carrier action for millions of passengers for years to come.