SJ will continue to operate the Stockholm - Östersund - Duved service while Vy will take over operation of the Stockholm - Kiruna - Narvik service from SJ, which has operated the route since 2008. The contracts will run from December 13 2020 until December 14 2024 with the option for two-year extensions.

Vy’s contract includes two daily overnight services from Stockholm to Narvik, which also offer day trains between Luleå and Narvik. Vy says around 500,000 trips are made on the route today. The operator will lease the rolling stock used for the service from Trafikverket.

SJ has operated the service to Duved in Jämtland since 2018 and the operator says it has been successful in growing traffic.

“Our goal is to continue to develop traffic and increase travel using our trains, in particular the number of business trips from Jämtland to Stockholm, where night trains are a perfect alternative to make morning meetings,” says Mr Jan Kyrk, business manager at SJ.

SJ Norge, SJ’s Norwegian subsidiary, will begin operating regional services between Trondheim and Storlien, 58km west of Duved, as part as Traffic Package North, which was awarded last June. SJ says this opens up opportunities to operate both day and night trains to and from Jämtland with connections to Trondheim and is investigating possible opportunities.

Meanwhile, on February 6, Vy Tåg, Vy’s Swedish subsidiary, secured a nine-year contract extension to operate regional services in Värmland from December 2020 with an option for a one-year extension.

The contract covers services on Fryksdals Railway between Torsby and Karlstad, and on the Värmland Railway between Charlottenberg and Kristinehamn. The services will account for 1.7 million timetable-km and 21,052 hours of operation.

Vy Tag will continue to operate the service using five two-car and three-three car Regina X50 EMUs and five two-car Itino Y31 DMUs.