Severe cold causes transport havoc in North Finland
The deep freeze that has descended upon Finland is causing disruptions to train traffic in several areas of the country.
On Wednesday night some trains were delayed by hours and problems appear to be continuing.
On Thursday morning temperatures ranged from -26 in the south to -32 degrees Celsius in the north of Finland, causing many problems with the national rail system.
A train from the western town of Kokkola to Helsinki was cancelled and several regional trains were replaced by buses on Thursday morning.
At 8 am Thursday national rail service VR announced that its passengers should be prepared for delays and possible cancellations and that schedules would get back to normal as soon as possible.
VR is posting updated traffic bulletins in English about eventual delays and cancellations.
Delays between Turku and Helsinki
Trains in the southwestern part of the country are also experiencing problems. At least two scheduled trains between Turku and Helsinki were cancelled Thursday morning.
An Intercity train from Helsinki to Turku scheduled to leave at 10:02 am was cancelled and replaced by a bus.
The arrivals and departures of both local and long distance trains in Helsinki are experiencing delays between a few minutes up to nearly an hour.
Metro, buses in Helsinki frozen
Public transport in greater Helsinki, where temperatures were at about -20 degrees on Thursday morning, have also seen delays and cancellations of buses and scheduled metro departures due to the bone-chilling weather.
The cold temperature has caused malfunctions to the metro’s door mechanisms.
Related stories from around the North:
Canada: Driving on the ice road in Canada’s Northwest Territories (Video), Eye on the Arctic
Finland: Winter speed limits take effect in Finland, Yle News
Sweden: Storm Helga weather warning for Sweden, Radio Sweden
United States: Drivers criticize Anchorage road conditions, Alaska Dispatch News
