Helsinki and Tampere

[TheHSRailFan]

Hello, im off to Helsinki in a few hours and before I come back I have time to ride the public transport during the week. Any recommendations for stopping off on the Commuter Rail, Light Rail, Metro or Trams? I do plan on getting off at a place and exploring a non-central area for both looking at the local stuff and transport reasons.
I am also visiting Tampere on a day trip with VR. I have already planned on taking the M 2 stops to Nokia station (just to say I've been) before jumping back on. I also plan on taking the tram but I really don't get NYSSE (the transport authority of Tampere) contactless ticket thing. It asks you about inputting which zones you are going in (without a map showing all the public transport in the zones) but also mentions a 90-minute timer and it's honestly confusing and vague... especially on the day ticket page. Other than that, any transport recommendations in Tampere as well as stops to get off that might be interesting?

Thanks!

 

[Taunton]

Apart from a couple of members here who live in Finland, I'm probably one of the few here who goes to Tampere; past posts refer. I haven't been on their tram since it opened. It's really one east-west line down the main street, with branches out to suburbs. The city, and all worth seeing, is very walkable from the station anyway.

The Helsinki system however is substantial and interesting (the Metro there is rather lacklustre). A day ticket takes you on all transport forms there. There's a nice little museum in the old depot at Toolo in the city. Speaking of museums, the Finnish railway museum at Hyvinkaa is on the Helsinki to Tampere railway which can be a worthwhile stopover.

You will have much fun in the snow this week. However, transport there just seems to keep on running. English is notably widely spoken.

 

[dutchflyer]

Have been to both-as trams are my main interest. Hourly IC-trains, quite comfy, link the 2 in less as 2 hrs.
In the HEL area at the end of last yr a kind of ring tram line has opened via suburbia, not linked to the main long time innercity tramnetwork. In Tampere one end has just been extended a few KMs.
Around HEL is a kind of german-style ´Verbund´ (think PTE) common fare area-easy to find via a certain mr google and will show all details for longer term ticket etc.
If you are interested in collecting/visiting more countries; From HEL also easy to do a daytrip, by ferry across the Botnic sea (probably not frozen up) to Eestti=Estonia, Tallinn-also has a modest tram network.

 

[Gag Halfrunt]

The original M100 trains on the Helsinki Metro are said to be the first trains in the world to have VVVF inverters.

HKL Class M100 - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Taunton]

Temperature there has been about -15 to -20 this past week and more, one of the coldest winters for some years, so things will certainly be frozen up on any inland water. The boats on the lakes, which I have elsewhere previously referred to the family there unkindly as the "Tampere Navy", will be locked in for some time to come. The Baltic ferries to Estonia have icebreaking capability, and do manage to keep going, if noisily.

 

[CarrotPie]

Hello, im off to Helsinki in a few hours and before I come back I have time to ride the public transport during the week. Any recommendations for stopping off on the Commuter Rail, Light Rail, Metro or Trams? I do plan on getting off at a place and exploring a non-central area for both looking at the local stuff and transport reasons.
I am also visiting Tampere on a day trip with VR. I have already planned on taking the M 2 stops to Nokia station (just to say I've been) before jumping back on. I also plan on taking the tram but I really don't get NYSSE (the transport authority of Tampere) contactless ticket thing. It asks you about inputting which zones you are going in (without a map showing all the public transport in the zones) but also mentions a 90-minute timer and it's honestly confusing and vague... especially on the day ticket page. Other than that, any transport recommendations in Tampere as well as stops to get off that might be interesting?

Thanks!

Grab a chair (and a brew) and settle down...

From a Helsinki point of view:

• Definitely ride the new Jokeri orbital light rail line (15). It opened last October, 10 months early and it's very good!
• Our metro is the northernmost system in the world (Mellunmäki station is the northernmost station) and is of exceptionally high quality (even if I do say so myself). The M100 units were groundbreaking in their day and have recently been refurbished by VR.
• Koivusaari station was the least used on the system for many years and it is entirely underground.
• The metro system's length has recently been doubled with the Länsimetro (west metro) extension. The newest section is from Matinkylä to Kivenlahti and it opened in December 2022. The stations are beautiful and highly functional. Finnoo's exit B has the longest escalators in Finland (78m long).
• The main depot is between Siiltie and Itäkeskus and the latter is the best place on the network for trainspotting: lots of ECS moves run through here before and after the peaks too.
• The commuter rail system is split into two parts: HSL's (Helsinki's TfL) services and those of VR. HSL's services use amazing Sm5 Stadler FLIRT units, and run to places such as the airport. If you have time, I recommend going to Siuntio, the least used station in the HSL area. It's served by a handful of trains every weekday, mostly during the peak, but you can get a good 15 minutes or so to check it out.
• Pasila is a busy shoulder station outside Helsinki, and is the best place in Finland for passenger trainspotting, as ECS moves between Finland's central depot (in Ilmala) and Helsinki happen all the time.

From a Tampere point of view:

• Check your trains are running. It has been exceptionally cold here (-20°) and VR has been cancelling some services in advance to thaw their fleet. If your train is a Pendolino (S), good luck, cos they don't work in these temperatures!
• Enjoy your ride! Finnish InterCity rolling stock are the best in Europe, from the double-decker restaurant car (car 3) with beer on tap to Exstra (First) class (car 2), from the kids play area (car 4) to the private compartments (every car except 3), the trains are amazing. Enjoy it while you can!
• Julia is our equivalent of OTT and RTT combined into an excellent industry-wide site, but it is unfortunately only available in Finnish. Slap Google Translate on though, and it gives you live train running data, maps, delay codes and signalling diagrams all at the press of a button!
• Nysse's payment is complicated compared to Helsinki. It has six zones and tickets cover two or more (sorta like Helsinki). Instructions on how to use contactless are here. The Nysse Mobiili app is also a suitable alternative. Remember to scan the barcode/use contactless on every trip!
• The M train was a pilot project introduced in 2019, and trains through to Toijala use Finland's oldest trains: the Sm2 units. Despite their age, they are very robustly-built, and they'll definitely keep you toasty in this cold snap! Do prepare for a blast from the past though, and be warned that the doors take no prisoners!
• Tesoma station opened in 2021 as part of the commuter train pilot. It's sort of an Acme suburban station, nothing special, but it's the second-newest station in the country, plus the northernmost commuter rail station.
• Nokia is the home of the global telecommunications firm, in Nysse zone C.
• If you've time, take a trip out to Orivesi on a Dm12 railcard (5tpd) or InterCity stock (hourly) just for fun. It's in Nysse zone F.
• Instructions for riding trains with a Nysse ticket are here, but bear in mind that VR tickets are always cheaper (because they don't include local buses).
• Definitely ride the trams. The vehicles are great, the network is brand new (8/2021) and between Hakametsä and Pohjois-Hervanta you go whizzing along the highway at up to 70km/h! The latest extension from Pyynikintori to Santalahti opened last August.

Edited to add extra ticketing information for Nysse.

 

[rf_ioliver]

Temperatures this week will vary from -15 to +3 during the day...just be careful walking.

Download the HSL app and just be aware of what zones you are using. As others have pointed out the capital region railway network, along with the metro and trams (and the very recently opened tram line 15 around the city) are easy to use. Also take a trip on the ferry over to Suomenlinna - it is part of the transport network so included in your ticket; it is worth standing at the front watching it break the ice ... warning: it will be cold

The Finnish Railway Museum is in Hyvinkää and a short walk from the station. Check opening times.

If you want a high-speed run, find a Pendolino going towards Lahti, you'll get 220kmh on Oikorata.

@CarrotPie Suinto?!?! In winter...there's nothing there and a dammned good chance of hypothermia

Nokia station? Again, a commuter town to Tampere and not a lot to do with the company of the same name (although that is where the company got the name from) - spend your time exploring Tampere instead - an old industrial city with some very nice restaurants. The tram is excellent and the depot is a short walk from the end of the line in Hervanta. Probably not a lot to see from outside, but inside it is very impressive and fully automated.

 

[CarrotPie]

@CarrotPie Suinto?!?! In winter...there's nothing there and a dammned good chance of hypothermia

But every service sits in the platform for 10-20 minutes before going back to Helsinki, so you can spend most of the time in the warm...

but inside it is very impressive and fully automated.

...not that you can get inside (AFAIK).

Also, it might be anoying from a mobile ticketing point of view (having to switch apps), but I highly recommend you download the unofficial Nysse app. It's much better than the standard HSL and Nysse journey planners (because it's not built on Digitransit. It's available in English too and there's an option to switch areas (eg HSL vs Nysse) automatically, plus it'll also use long-distance trains.

 

[TheHSRailFan]

Thank you for the replies everyone,
Been unable to reply the past 2 days due to flying and exploring Helsinki. Though my original plan was scrapped yesterday with the museums closed on a Monday (like anywhere in Europe) so I decided to ride the city trams instead. Off to Tampere now on IC 41 and a bit of a shame that it's going to get 2c today (essentially melting away sorta). But I will take this all into account. Thanks!