Level crossings on the state-owned railway network
A level crossing is where a road or pedestrian/cycle route crosses the railway at the same level. The main and side lines of the state-owned railway network have about 2,600 level crossings. Level crossings are being removed in connection with development projects and renovations, and some level crossings are being removed as independent projects. Level crossings are mainly located on the secondary rail network. For example, the entire main line from Helsinki to Oulu is free of level crossings. This line is part of the Finnish TEN-T network.
Level crossings are currently the clearest risk on railways. The risk not only concerns road users, but also the safety of rail traffic and therefore train passengers.
Removing level crossings is an important individual measure that can improve traffic safety and promote rail traffic running smoothly, especially on busy track sections.
Level crossing programme
To improve level crossing safety, the Ministry of Transport and Communications made a decision in 2017 on a programme to improve level crossing safety. As the work progresses, the list of planned improvements has kept growing, and now in 2021 there are more than 400 level crossings that have been listed for removal or improvement.
More detailed information on the level crossings included in the programme is available in the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency’s map service. In the map service, you can see what measures have been planned for each level crossing included in the programme and the target timetable for the work.