The annual winter holiday season is again upon us, as the first schools start their holidays on 19 February and the next on 26 February and 4 March 2024, depending on the region. On the roads, the holiday season can be seen in an increase in traffic from the south of Finland to the north. The impact of the Nordic Response 24 military exercise can also be seen in the increased traffic volumes in Western Lapland. Anticipation is important for making road traffic as safe and smooth as possible.
"In the coming holiday weekends, road traffic will be busy, so it is a good idea to reserve more time on the road. Safe traffic always requires that everyone cooperates with each other, so please keep a proper safety distance to the car in front of you, even in a queue. Let's also forget about unnecessary overtaking and instead focus on making traffic run safely while driving to avoid unnecessary accidents or near misses," remarks Eero Sauramäki, Head of Unit at Fintraffic Road Traffic Centre.
Forecasts from Fintraffic Road Traffic Centre
Friday 16 February and Saturday 17 February are expected to be the busiest days of outbound traffic during the winter holiday. On these days, many travel north from Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Southwest Finland and Satakunta regions. Traffic volumes will rise on Friday afternoon, and there may be intermittent queues, especially on the exit roads from Helsinki Metropolitan Area and on main roads 4, 5 and 9 up to Jyväskylä and Mikkeli. Traffic volumes that are higher than normal winter Sundays are also expected for Sunday 18 February, even though the traffic volumes will be moderate compared to the previous days. You should also prepare for queues in the vicinity of northern tourist destinations, especially on Friday and Saturday.
Shift during second weekend: Saturday busiest day in traffic
When holidaymakers from Southern Finland return home, residents of Cental Finland will embark on their holiday. As such, on Friday 23 February, the volume of returning traffic on the roads of Southern Finland and the volume of outgoing and returning traffic on the roads of Central Finland will increase. However, the busiest day of the week is only Saturday 24 February: there will be plenty of traffic to the north, especially on main roads 4, 5 and 9. In southbound traffic, volumes will rise further on Sunday 25 February, but they will probably be lower than on Saturday. On Sunday, main roads 3, 4, 5 and 9 will be the most popular routes. You should also prepare for queues in the vicinity of northern tourist destinations, especially on Friday and Saturday.
Third peak in northward traffic in early March
The last traffic peak during the holiday weeks will take place on the first weekend of March, when the holidaymakers of the previous week return and, at the same time, holidays start in Northern and Eastern Finland. On Friday 1 March and Sunday 3 March, traffic is busy in the north, especially on the routes Oulu–Kemi–Rovaniemi (main road 4) and Oulu–Kuusamo (main road 20).
The Nordic Response 24 military exercise can be seen in Lapland
In northward holiday traffic, it is worthwhile to prepare for the Finnish Defence Forces troops on the roads of Western Lapland who are participating in the Nordic Response 24 exercise. Especially during the troops’ travel to and from the exercise (29 February–5 March and 14–17 March), traffic may become congested on the main road network, also in the vicinity of winter holiday destinations in Western Lapland.
There will be extensive traffic to the exercise on the northern road sections from 29 February to 5 March:
- Roads 4 and 21 north of Oulu
- Road 79 north of Rovaniemi
- Road 80 from Sodankylä to Kittilä
- Road 93 from Palojoensuu to Kivilompolo
- Roads 21 and 93 between Kolari and Enontekiö
Oversized transports will move along the routes listed above on 2–5 March. In addition to this, troops arriving from Southern Finland may occasionally congest traffic on main road 4 on 1 and 2 March.
The return traffic from the exercise on 12–17 March focuses on the same road sections as outgoing traffic. However, more than half of the return traffic will take place on main roads 4 and 92, concentrating on the road section Karigasniemi–Inari–Saariselkä. Oversized transports will move on the roads on 12–15 March on the route Enontekiö–Muonio–Kittilä–Sodankylä.
For more information on the exercise, visit the Finnish Defence Forces website: Nordic Response 24 - The Finnish Defence Forces
Please plan your trip
It is a good idea to prepare for the holiday traffic and check the traffic situation and weather conditions on your own route in advance.
"Many travellers will be on a long journey to the north, so everyone should remember the importance of a good rest and take enough breaks while driving. We also recommend planning your route in advance. The Fintraffic Traffic Situation service provides information on road conditions, traffic volumes, traffic disruptions and electric car charging stations, for example," Eero Sauramäki adds.
On the road, you can also follow updates on the traffic and conditions on your route from the free Fintraffic Mobile, which also provides automatic push notifications about traffic disruptions and warnings.
Fintraffic wishes you a safe winter holiday on the road!
