Increased competition in the bus and train sector saved consumers millions News
Cheaper long-distance bus tickets also reduced fares on trains.
According to the Finnish Competition and Consumer Authority (KKV), the legal reforms reduced the prices of long-distance bus tickets by about 25 percent in 2014-2019.
At the same time, the state-owned railway company VR reduced long-distance train tickets by about 20 percent, KKV says in its report.
The combined effect of the fall in ticket prices saved consumers more than EUR 80 million.
The low-cost bus company Onnibus rolled along Finnish roads for the first time in 2012, causing significant disruption to the long-distance travel industry and getting at least one bus company pull out market in 2018.
According to KKV, the side effects of the competition reforms were also seen at the Helsinki Public Transport Agency (HSL).
Due to the threat of increased competition, fewer bidders were entered into HSL’s project bids, but lower-priced contracts resulted in a 40% reduction in costs for the authority.
According to KKV, this means savings of around EUR 25-30 million in taxpayers’ money each year.
The consumer authority also pointed out that VR’s result had not been affected by reduced ticket prices, as the company had responded to increased competition by streamlining operations and cutting costs.