Temporary act on collecting data on publicly supported transport services to enter into force in July

On 27 June 2025, the President of the Republic approved temporary amendments to the Act on Transport Services, which will enter into force on 1 July 2025. The purpose is to bring data on publicly supported passenger transport services in Northern Finland into one place.

During the experiment, the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom will collect data on transport services organised under the Social Welfare Act, Disability Services Act and Health Care Act by the wellbeing services counties of Central Ostrobothnia, North Ostrobothnia, Lapland and Kainuu. In addition, Traficom will be provided with access to information on transport services reimbursed under the Health Insurance Act and carried out in the areas of operation of the same wellbeing services counties. The data to be collected by Traficom relate to the demand, supply and delivery of transport services. Data will be collected for two whole calendar years in 2026 and 2027.

The temporary and regionally limited act will be in force for three years. The Act will enter into force on 1 July 2025 so that the authorities and the brokering and dispatch services supplying data have time to prepare for the actual data collection at the turn of the year. The Act does not change the way publicly supported transport services are organised. It has no impact on the daily lives of the customers using the transport services and no trips of any individual person can be identified from the material.

Publicly supported transport services are organised by several operators and the information on the services is fragmented. The act compiles data on transport services provided by healthcare and social welfare services in one place to get a better overall picture of how transport services are organised. The knowledge base to be collected will make it possible to draw up a description of the current state, assess the more detailed development plans and help secure transport services in the future.

Although the act will make it possible to collect data on certain transport services only on an experimental and regional basis, the results of the experiment can in future be utilised at the national level.

Aim is to secure transport services also in the future

The annual overall cost of publicly supported transport to society exceeds EUR 1.2 billion. Transport services for the health and social services account for about one quarter of this. Together with the state of the general government finances, the constantly rising transport costs put pressure on the organisers to develop the services.

The data to be collected during the experiment will help assess the efficiency and development of the services from a wider perspective. For example, the potential for combining transport operations and for better utilising demand-responsive and public transport services can be evaluated. It is absolutely necessary to further develop the publicly supported transport services so that they can be secured in the future also in sparsely populated areas.

What’s next?

The temporary act will enter into force on 1 July 2025 so that the implementation measures can be started before the actual data collection begins. Data collection will take place in 2026 and 2027. The act will remain in force until 30 June 2028 to allow time for reporting the results after the data collection has ended.

Traficom will work together with relevant stakeholders and provide updates in autumn 2025.

A mid-term report will be published in 2027 and a final report in 2028.

Inquiries:

Elina Immonen, Director of Unit, elina.immonen(at)gov.fi, tel. +358 29 534 2159
Jenni Rantio, Senior Ministerial Adviser, jenni.rantio(at)gov.fi, tel. +358 29 534 2205
Atte Riihelä, Senior Specialist, atte.riihela(at)gov.fi, tel. +358 29 534 2181