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COVID-19 leads to record low Christmas traffic
Christian Wenande
December 24th, 2020
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This article is more than 4 years old.
According to DSB, around 50,000 people have canceled their train tickets over the past couple of weeks and bus traffic is down as well
Lots of empty seats out there on the rail lines (photo: Pixabay)
Christmas is usually a time when the Danes flock in droves to return back to where they originally hail from.
Copenhagen, for instance, sees a mass exodus of people from Jutland and Funen every year, as they return home to see their families.
But not so much this year, thanks to the COVID-19 situation.
National rail operators DSB have revealed that a record few people are taking trains over the Christmas period.
Almost 26,000 train tickets were cancelled last week, while another 24,000 were nixed the week before.
“It’s really positive that the Danes are taking care and avoiding journeys when they can,” said transport minister, Benny Engelbrecht.
“I’m pleased that we can keep the public transport going for those who have critical jobs and those who don’t have a car – like students.”
READ ALSO: Lowest number of traffic fatalities in 90 years
Keep on truckin’
The decline in traffic was also registered for car and bus traffic – down by 32 and 76 percent compared to the same period last year.
Meanwhile, the transportation of goods seems to be continuing unaffected. Truck traffic was actually 5.6 percent higher than this time in 2019.
“Despite empty trains and buses being a sad picture, it’s a good thing to see the transportation of goods remaining high at this time. And it’s a sure sign that society is thriving, despite the coronavirus,” said Engelbrecht.
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