Children Bicycling In Sub-Zero Temperature Is A Norm In This City

Finland. Oulu.

In a city covered in snow for five months of the year, you wouldn’t blame cyclists for hibernating their bikes.

But this city proves otherwise…

Despite being covered in snow for five months of the year, Oulu’s cyclists make the time to keep pedalling even in the coldest and darkest months.

Finland is located between 60° and 70° north latitude and has severe winters and a relatively short growing season, sometimes interrupted by frost. This proves that winter cycling doesn’t have to be about snow or temperature. On the coldest winter days in Lapland, temperatures can drop as low as -45 degrees Celsius (-49 degrees Fahrenheit).

In Northern Finland, especially in Lapland, winters are long and cold, and summers are relatively hot but short. In general, the Finnish climate is characterized by long and very cold winters and short summers. Winter in Northern Finland lasts about 200 days with constant snow cover from about mid-October to early May.

Winter in southern Finland (when the average daily temperature stays below 0 degrees Celsius or 32 degrees Fahrenheit) usually lasts about 100 days and inland snow usually covers the ground from around late November to April, and in coastal areas such as Helsinki, snow often covers the ground from late December to late March.

After a heavy snowfall, cyclists often notice that designated bike lanes or bike paths are covered in snow, making them impassable. Every roadway, sidewalk and bike path is covered with a layer of packed snow. However, one of the first things you see on the streets of the city is bicycles.

One reason

One reason is that in winter, ploughing bike paths are preferable to ploughing roads. One of the main reasons is that Oulu prioritizes bike infrastructure and maintenance during the winter months.

The freezing conditions in Oulu actually help to get around, as the ploughs only blow away the top layer of snow, and the rest is compacted as cyclists pedal over it.

Second: Infrastructure

Infrastructure and bike maintenance is a top priority even in winter. In the Finnish city of Oulu, about one in five trips is made by bicycle. Approximately every fifth trip to Oulu is made by bicycle, and in winter this figure drops to 12%. However, 22% of city trips are by bike and three times as many people report that they cycle regularly.

Cycling is fine in Finland, there are bike paths in built-up areas, and big cities like Helsinki are great for cyclists with marked routes and dedicated bike lanes. Most of the main roads in Finland are well-paved and traffic is never congested, except for the coastal sections and some southern areas connecting major cities, such as road 2 from Tampere to Helsinki or Turku to Helsinki.

In Finland, you can walk, cycle and ski anywhere, from forests to fields (uncultivated, of course), from beaches to private roads. Finland is a sparsely populated country with forests covering 72.5% of the land surface, with unpaved roads and trails deep into these forests, making the country an ideal cycling destination for those who want to get lost in nature.

When it comes to challenging cycling conditions, fat bikes come and shine. Most Finnish cities pride themselves on offering a well-planned infrastructure for winter cycling, but for safe driving, using the right tires is paramount.

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