HSL in 2023

In 2023, we continued to emerge from the shadow of the Covid-19 pandemic. Passenger numbers on our services increased from 2022 and so did fare revenue.

However, we are yet to reach the pre-pandemic levels. In 2023, a total of 344 million journeys were made on our public transport services. This was almost 53 million journeys less than in 2019.

Passengers were satisfied with public transport services: 86 percent of the respondents to our 2023 customer satisfaction survey gave the services a good or very good rating. Our Net Promoter Score (NPS), which measures customers’ willingness to recommend our services, also improved last year.

Light rail 15 started, customers pleased with the new service

The first light rail service in the Helsinki region started operating on 21 October 2023. Light rail 15 runs between Itäkeskus and Keilaniemi.

The new emission-free mode of transport strengthens the region’s public transport network and improves crosstown service quality. The light rail replaced trunk bus route 550, whose capacity was no longer sufficient to meet the increasing passenger demand.

Passengers have been pleased with the new light rail. In our 2023 customer satisfaction survey, 90 percent of light rail passengers gave the service a good or very good rating. The newcomer immediately outranked other modes of transport in customer satisfaction.

Our new promise: Anything is possible!

Last year, we announced our new brand promise, “Anything is possible”. This is our new motto and an expression of our attitude to customers, each other, our partners and owners.

We solve everyday problems with an enabling attitude. Our services enable people to go about their daily lives.

Electric buses, environmental bonuses and Responsibility Program

We continued our work to promote sustainable urban transport. We got more electric buses and in 2023, there were in total 428 electric buses in service in the Helsinki region. About one third of the bus services procured by us were operated with electric buses.

We paid bus companies a total of EUR 1.4 million in environmental bonuses for the use of biodiesel.

We developed our first Responsibility Program, which was published in June 2023. Our goal is to be a leader, facilitator and partner in sustainable mobility.

Changes in transport services

In 2023, we strengthened the public transport trunk route network by introducing bus routes 520 and 530. They started operating on 14 August. Bus 520 runs from Matinkylä to Martinlaakso, bus 530 from Matinkylä to Myyrmäki.

The new trunk bus routes also entailed changes to other bus routes especially in Leppävaara and Tapiola but also elsewhere in Espoo.

In Suur-Espoonlahti and Suur-Kauklahti, there were major changes to bus routes from 6 February 2023 when the new Espoonlahti bus terminal was opened.

A new bus terminal was opened in Kivistö, Vantaa on 27 November.

Staff felt their work was meaningful

At the end of 2023, HSL had 427 employees.
According to the staff survey, meaningful work tasks were the most important aspect in the employees’ work.

In 2023, we clarified the direction of our operations. Our goal is to create a strong organizational culture and a leadership style that support the achievement of goals and good employee experience, which in turn produce good customer experience.

2023 in figures

Click the link below to find information on the number of journeys made on the transport services we procure and how satisfied customers were with different modes of transport.