Delays between Stockholm and Uppsala cost society over one million kronor a day, according to new calculations from the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce. Calculations, based on production statistics from the Swedish Transport Administration, show that 15 percent of trains are more than five minutes late, with an average delay of 16 minutes.
– It is clear that the delays are affecting travelers and businesses throughout the region. The socio-economic cost amounts to just over 374 million kronor per year. The fact that we have delays in our public transport of almost one million kronor a day is not enough, says David Stenergard, an expert on infrastructure at the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
The Stockholm Chamber of Commerce believes in particular that a faster expansion of the four-track line between Uppsala and Stockholm would solve the problem of major delays. The four-track line, when fully developed, will improve travel in the capital region. A total of 40,000 people commute between Stockholm and Uppsala every day.
– Now is the time for politics to step forward. The light rail has been underfunded, which has delayed the project, with the consequence that we are now burdened with large socio-economic costs every year. The light rail is associated with great benefits and would facilitate commuting in the metropolitan region, says Carl Bergkvist, chief economist at the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
According to the press release.
