Lentorata


The Lentorata is a planned railway line in Finland, designed to link Helsinki Airport to the long-distance Finnish railway network and to complement the current airport connection via the Ring Rail Line.

History

The Lentorata has been included in the Finnish Transport Agency's plans since 2010. Following the opening of the Ring Rail Line in 2015, Helsinki Airport gained its first railway connection through the Helsinki commuter rail network. However, a need has also been identified for a rail link to long distance traffic, with support from Finavia, the mayors of Helsinki and Tampere and the chief executive of the state-owned national rail company VR Group.

Route

The line is planned travel in a long tunnel under the airport and allow direct access from long-distance trains, as well as free the rail capacity taken up by long-distance traffic in the current main corridor for the increasing local commuter traffic. The line would then continue northward to Tampere as either an upgraded Riihimäki–Tampere railway or a brand new parallel line; and eastward to Kouvola using the planned new Itärata railway.

Cost

In 2019, Helsinki Times reported that, as part of a new rail connection with an expected travel time of one hour from Helsinki to Tampere via the airport, the project would cost a total of €5.5 billion.