12 January marked one month since the launch of the high-speed Allegro train service between St Petersburg and Helsinki. In their first month, Allegro trains transported over 23,000 passengers. During the New Year holidays, average seat occupancy was over 83%, and on certain journeys reached almost 100%.
The launch of high-speed trains between St Petersburg and Helsinki was the result of a joint decision taken by Russia and Finland. Under the project to prepare for the service, Russian Railways rebuilt the St Petersburg – Buslovskaya line, with a length of 157 km.
Two pairs of trains run daily on the St Petersburg – Helsinki – St Petersburg route, departing from St Petersburg at 06:40 and 15:25, and from Helsinki at 10:00 and 15:00.
The launch of the high-speed service has reduced the journey time between St. Petersburg and Helsinki from 6 hours 18 minutes to just over 3 hours 30 minutes, while the journey time on Russian territory has been cut from 3 hours 11 minutes to 90 minutes. The shorter journey time is due to the more technically advanced trains, quicker border checkpoint procedures, and greater train speeds. The Allegro trains can reach 200 km/h on Russian territory, and 220 km/h on Finnish territory.
