Matkahuolto
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| Founded | 1933 |
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| Headquarters | Lauttasaarentie 8 Helsinki, Finland. |
| Service area | Finland |
| Service type | Intercity coach service |
| Hubs | Kamppi Center, Helsinki Airport, and others |
| Fuel type | Diesel |
| Chief executive | Jarmo Oksaharju |
| Website | Matkahuolto.fi |
Oy Matkahuolto Ab is a Finnish company, which was established on 28 January 1933 to operate and maintain bus stations throughout Finland and to provide freight services. The innovator and enthusiastic spokesman was Kaarlo Leander, the chair of Linja-autoliitto ry which was established to act as the interest group of private bus operators.
Waiting rooms were proposed to be built in the biggest cities, and the first bus stations were built in 1929 in Tampere and in Hämeenlinna in the gas stations of Shell Oy and Nobel-Standard (Esso) Oy. Bus stations were quickly built by the local departments of Linja-autoliitto also in Helsinki, Viipuri, Porvoo, Loviisa, Lohja, Lappeenranta and Imatra. In the end of the century, there were already 36 bus stations in Finland, and in 56 localities there was a Matkahuolto agent selling tickets and handling freight. The total amount of personnel was approximately 250. The busiest and most profitable were the bus stations of Helsinki and other big cities. These stations had also cafeterias that were rented to outsiders.
The outbreak of the Winter War in the end of November 1939 made operations more difficult and many bus stations were damaged by bombing. Extra income was obtained by selling coal, and buses were powered by wood gas generators. The Continuation War against Russia took place in 1941-44, and the Lapland war against Germany ended in 1945.
The wartime depression started to ease gradually although many products were under control until the 1950s. Freight traffic started to increase and in the end of the 1940s, when 40 percent of turnover came from freight traffic. There were 49 bus stations and 310 agents. The number of employees was 320, of which almost 80 percent were women. A new financing method for bus stations was developed in 1954. Together with cities and other partners, property companies started to be established and thus, risks were diminished. In the end of the 1960s, the company started to claim to its possession kiosks and cafeterias but in the longer term, this was not an economically viable venture.
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Wikipedia