Minister of Regional Affairs Siim Valmar Kiisler says the decision to close the national carrier's Tallinn-Tartu air route is the right one and a faster train connection would be a better solution.
The route operated by Estonian Air was open since February 2011 and the last flight between Lennart Meri Airport and Tartu's Ülenurme will take place just before Christmas.
Tartu city officials have been lobbying national officials in recent weeks for a connection similar to the one between Tallinn and the islands, according to ERR radio.
But Kiisler shot the idea down, saying that one shuttle a day would not give Tartu inhabitants what they really need - connectedness to the rest of the world. "What Estonian Air has done in recent years has not been successful," he said. "Let's put state subsidies into other means, as planes don't fly all the time, transfers take much time and often a train or bus would have got you there faster."
People in Tartu need more flights to Helsinki, Kiisler said. There currently is a route between the southern Estonian city and the Finnish capital. The state is planning to build a train terminal at Tallinn Airport; Kiisler says the state should also invest in faster trains that would get Tartuensians onto morning flights out of Tallinn. All trains on the Tartu line, including express trains, do stop at Ülemiste station, which is within walking distance of the airport.
Tartu Mayor Urmas Kruuse says Kiisler is on the right track, but notes the developments will only materialize in the future. But former Tartu deputy mayor Hannes Astok says people need a solution sooner. "The trains will reach Estonia in 2014 and there is neither a project nor the will for the terminal project. People need to fly today, we don't need promises with a term of the distant future," Astok said.
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