Kolari railway station
Encyclopedia
Kolari
Kolari is a municipality of Finland at the Swedish border, which follows the Torne River, the longest free-flowing river in Europe.It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
in the Lapland Province of Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
. It is the northernmost railway station in Finland, located 1067.2 kilometres (663.1 mi) north of Helsinki Central railway station
Helsinki Central railway station
Helsinki Central railway station is a widely recognised landmark in central Helsinki, Finland, and the focal point of public transport in the Greater Helsinki area. The station is used by approximately 200,000 passengers per day, making it Finland's most-visited building...
(via Oulu
Oulu railway station
The Oulu Railway Station is located in the centre of Oulu, Finland, in the city district of Vaara. All trains are operated by VR. Nearby is the bus station for long-distance buses....
, Seinäjoki
Seinäjoki railway station
The Seinäjoki railway station is located in the centre of city of Seinäjoki, Finland, at Valtionkatu 1. The current station building was built in the 1970s, and it is located in the same building as the bus station. In the 2000s, the building was renovated as a modern travel centre.Seinäjoki is a...
and Haapamäki
Haapamäki railway station
Haapamäki railway station is a junction station in the village of Haapamäki, in Keuruu, Finland. Construction on the railway line from Tampere to Seinäjoki via Haapamäki was finished in 1882. When the railway line to Jyväskylä was built, Haapamäki became a junction station...
stations).
Kolari station is the terminus of the track from Tornio
Tornio
Tornio is a town and municipality in Lapland, Finland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. The population density is , with a total population of . It borders to the Swedish municipality of Haparanda...
to Kolari, and serves both passenger and cargo traffic. Passenger traffic is at its highest during the skiing
Ski
A ski is a long, flat device worn on the foot, usually attached through a boot, designed to help the wearer slide smoothly over snow. Originally intended as an aid to travel in snowy regions, they are now mainly used for recreational and sporting purposes...
season and, as well as Kolari, the station also serves Levi
Levi, Finland
Levi, located in Finnish Lapland, is the largest ski resort in Finland. The resort is located in Kittilä municipality and is served by Kittilä Airport and Kolari train station. At a latitude of 67.8° north, it is located approximately north of the Arctic Circle.The Levi fell is at an elevation of...
, Ylläs
Ylläs
Ylläs, or Yllästunturi in Finnish, is a high fell in the municipality of Kolari in Lapland Province of Finland. There are two villages near Ylläs: Äkäslompolo on the north side and Ylläsjärvi in the south. They are connected by a 11 km road, around the side of the fell...
, Äkäslompolo, Pallas and Muonio
Muonio
Muonio is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Lapland. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
, all of which can be reached by bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
from the station. For part of the year, the station is also served by car transporter trains from Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
and Tampere
Tampere
Tampere is a city in southern Finland. It is the most populous inland city in any of the Nordic countries. The city has a population of , growing to approximately 300,000 people in the conurbation and over 340,000 in the metropolitan area. Tampere is the third most-populous municipality in...
. During the most active season, trains to Kolari include a VR Group
VR Group
VR or VR Group is a state-owned railway company in Finland. Formerly known as Suomen Valtion Rautatiet until 1922 and Valtionrautatiet / Statsjärnvägarna until 1995...
club car, offering a nightclub
Nightclub
A nightclub is an entertainment venue which usually operates late into the night...
during the trip.
A new station building was constructed at Kolari in 2000, in the style of a Lappish hut. Most trains (both freight and passenger) at Kolari are hauled by VR Class Dr16
VR Class Dr16
The Dr16 is a class of diesel-electric locomotives used by VR . The 23 locomotives have a single, off-centre cab and are currently VR's most powerful diesel locomotives. Their nickname is "Iso Vaalee"...
diesel locomotives, with smaller Dv12
VR Class Dv12
The Dv12 is the standard Finnish medium-weight diesel-hydraulic road locomotive operated by VR. As all the main lines of Finnish railway network have been electrificied, the locomotive is designated mostly to unelectrified, less frequently used side lines. Occasionally it may still pull cargo...
locomotives also seeing use.