It includes questions about the winter maintenance of pavements, cycling lanes and streets, as well as the outdoor recreation routes and park pathways that are cleared of snow in the winter.
Responding will take approximately 5–10 minutes. The replies will be used to help improve the maintenance efforts. You can respond to the map-based survey in Finnish, Swedish or English.
Please respond to the survey (map-based)(Link leads to external service)
Short URL: https://bit.ly/talvikunnossapito23(Link leads to external service)
The visually impaired have the opportunity to respond to an accessible survey.
Please respond to the survey for visually impaired (accessible)(Link leads to external service)
Short URL: https://bit.ly/talvikunnossapito23-kartaton(Link leads to external service)
Please respond by 20 March 2023. If you have specific feedback that requires immediate action, please send a message through the City of Helsinki feedback channel: hel.fi/feedback.
Energy-saving measures and the effects of war in Ukraine have challenged winter maintenance
There have been new experiments in snow removal, storage and melting this year. This winter, parking spaces have been taken over as snow storage sites in Vallila and in Taka-Töölö. In the experiment, snow is stored in parking spaces and not transported away.
“We conduct a survey on winter maintenance every year, because city residents’ feedback is important. The survey’s results and map entries are reviewed by region and utilised in organising winter maintenance and developing our work. This winter, we are happy to have received more positive feedback. Feedback is taken into account, and it matters – even if snow clearance cannot be immediately improved on every single street,” says Team Leader Tarja Myller from the City of Helsinki’s Urban Environment Division about the maintenance of street areas.
There are nine snow collection areas in Helsinki. This winter, the Hernesaari snow collection area has only been available daily from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The shortage of raw materials and the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine have also had an impact on winter maintenance. There has been limited availability of salt solution, and its lack has particularly affected treatment methods on the cycling and pedestrian routes included in intensified winter maintenance. This winter, the City has given up the heating of stairs covered by the winter maintenance scheme to save electricity.
The routes in intensified winter maintenance were extended for the winter of 2022–2023 and now cover approximately 95 kilometres of cycling and pedestrian routes.
Winter street maintenance in Helsinki
The streets of Helsinki are always cleared according to predefined maintenance classes. The work has been prioritised, with the main roads, public transport streets, and main pedestrian and cycling routes ploughed first. Residential streets are ploughed next.
The City is responsible for the winter maintenance of streets, cycling lanes and pavements in suburban areas. In the city centre, winter maintenance of pavements is the responsibility of the property owners.
The City maintains approximately 1,200 kilometres of vehicle traffic streets and roads and about 2,500 kilometres of cycling and pedestrian routes.
