On 4th April 2005 Banverket (Swedish rail infrastructure manager) commissioned VTI to carry out a market analysis of High Speed Rail Lines in Europe. The analysis should serve as an important input in the further planning of the Götalandsbanan (Stockholm-Jönköping-Göteborg) and Södra Stambanan. (Stockholm-Malmö). High Speed (HS) in this report refers to ? 250 km/h. An important part of the work has been to present relevant comparisons between Götalandsbanan and similar lines in other countries. Sweden has more passenger rail traffic as measured in passenger km compared to other countries. Götalandsbanan is intended to serve the heart of Sweden with 3-3½ million inhabitants. The population served by the HS line in Spain for example is similar but in many other cases the population is several times larger. Furthermore the assumed travel distances along Götalandsbanan are similar to such distances abroad where rail has been able to compete successfully with air travel.
