By David Briginshaw, International Railway Journal; February 21, 2019
SWEDEN’s national passenger operator SJ carried a record 31.8 million passengers in 2018, an increase of 1.5 million compared with 2017. While net sales increase from SKr 7.78bn ($US 832m) in 2017 to SKr 7.87bn last year, operating profit dropped from SKr 666m to SKr 486m.
SJ achieved a strong financial recovery in the last quarter of 2018, thanks to releasing tickets for sale earlier than normal and running additional services in the run up to Christmas. “We doubled some departures before Christmas, and nearly 200,000 people travelled with us,” says Mr Crister Fritzson, SJ’s CEO.