Lappeenranta, Finland. May 27 (Interfax) - The Russian and Finnish prime ministers, Vladimir Putin and Matti Vanhanen, attended a presentation ceremony for a new high-speed train that will start running between Helsinki and St. Petersburg in December.
The Allegro train will have a maximum speed of 220 kilometers per hour and take three and a half, and subsequently three, hours to cover the distance between the two cities instead of today’s five and a half hours.
Vanhanen said all of the customs and border crossing formalities would be fulfilled on the train.
He credited the project with being a splendid example of cooperation between the Russian and Finnish railroads.
The chief executive of the Finnish railroad company VR, Mikael Aro, told Putin the Allegro would soon be sent to Russia for certification. The train is due to be certified by Russia by December 9 and to be put in service on December 12, Aro said.
He said VR would like to invite the Russian and Finnish prime ministers to attend the launching ceremony for the train, scheduled for December 1.
