The government has tasked the Swedish Transport Administration with investigating and assessing the need for and conditions surrounding civil service in the transportation sector. The purpose is to meet staffing needs in the transportation emergency response sector during periods of heightened readiness and to propose measures.
– The serious security situation serves as a reminder of how important it is for us in Sweden to be able to handle heightened alert status and, in the worst-case scenario, war. It is essential that functions critical to society have access to the personnel needed to ultimately meet the demands of war. A robust transportation system is crucial for many capabilities during both civilian crises and heightened alert. The government therefore wants the Swedish Transport Administration to investigate whether there is a need to have personnel subject to civil service obligations on standby in the transportation sector, says Minister of Infrastructure and Housing Andreas Carlson.
– We are now taking the next step to expand civil service obligations to more sectors. Ensuring that Sweden’s transportation systems continue to function, even in times of crisis, is a critical part of our civil defense. This means ensuring that people can get to work and that goods such as food, medicine, and fuel continue to be delivered where they are needed. This requires personnel. That is why it is imperative that the Swedish Transport Administration be tasked today with investigating civil service in the transportation emergency preparedness sector,” says Carl-Oskar Bohlin, Minister of Civil Defense.
The assignment concerns staffing for socially critical operations that are important to total defense but fall outside the Swedish Armed Forces’ area of responsibility. The agency is to examine in particular which personnel needs in the transportation sector could be met through civil service, or whether there are measures other than civil service that would be better suited to meeting those needs.
In the event of heightened alert, transportation needs will change compared to peacetime conditions. While it can be assumed that the military’s need for various transportation resources will increase, people in critical jobs must still be able to get to work, and essential goods such as food, medicine, water, and fuel must be delivered.
The assignment is to be reported on, first, in an interim report by March 12, 2026, which will focus specifically on the potential cost of implementation, and second, in a final report by October 9, 2026.
