[
]
Neighbourhoods and other subdivisions
The city of Tampere is divided into seven subdivisions, each of which includes the many districts and their suburbs. There are a total of 111 statistical areas in Tampere. However, the statistical areas made for Tampere's statistics do not fully correspond to the Tampere district division or the residents' perception of the districts, as the Amuri, Kyttälä and Tammela districts, for example, are divided into two parts corresponding to the official district division, and in addition to this, Liisankallio and Kalevanrinne
Kalevanrinne is a district of Tampere, Finland. It is located in the Sampo area between the districts of Kaleva and Järvensivu, bordering Liisankallio and Kalevanharju in the west, Hakametsä and Vuohenoja in the east. The city plan of Ka ...
are often considered to belong to the Kaleva district.[
]
Climate
Tampere has a Subarctic climate
The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of an ocean, g ...
(Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...
''Dfc'') bordering the Humid continental climate
A humid continental climate is a climatic region defined by Russo-German climatologist Wladimir Köppen in 1900, typified by four distinct seasons and large seasonal temperature differences, with warm to hot (and often humid) summers and freez ...
''Dfb'' climate zone. Winters are cold and the average temperature from December to February is below . Summers are cool to warm. On average, snow cover lasts 4–5 months from late November to early April. Considering it being close to the subarctic threshold and inland, winters are, on average, quite mild for the classification, as is the annual mean temperature.
Temperature records of Tampere
Temperature records of Tampere and the near-by Tampere–Pirkkala Airport:[
Highest temperatures at the Tampere–Pirkkala Airport by month since 1980:][
Lowest temperatures in Tampere:][
Lowest temperatures at the Tampere–Pirkkala Airport by month since 1980:][
]
Cityscape
Revival and nationalism
Tampere has buildings from many architectural periods. Only the old stone church of Messukylä represents medieval
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
building culture.[ Early 19th century ]neoclassicism
Neoclassicism (also spelled Neo-classicism) was a Western cultural movement in the decorative and visual arts, literature, theatre, music, and architecture that drew inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. Neoclassicism ...
, in turn, is represented by the Tampere Old Church
The Tampere Old Church ( fi, Tampereen Vanha Kirkko; sv, Tammerfors gamla kyrka) is a wooden cross church opened in 1825 in Tampere, Finland near the Central Square. The old church is mainly used by the Swedish-speaking Lutheran congregation in ...
and its belfry. The Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...
buildings in Tampere that emerged from neoclassicism are the new Messukylä Church and the Alexander Church, and the Renaissance Revival
Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th century architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival but which instead drew inspiration from a wide range o ...
buildings are the Hatanpää Manor, the Tampere City Hall,[ the Ruuskanen House and Näsilinna. The ]romantic nationalism
Romantic nationalism (also national romanticism, organic nationalism, identity nationalism) is the form of nationalism in which the state claims its political legitimacy as an organic consequence of the unity of those it governs. This includes ...
design can be seen in the Commerce House, the Tirkkonen House, the Palander House, the Tampere Cathedral
Tampere Cathedral ( fi, Tampereen tuomiokirkko, sv, Tammerfors domkyrka; originally known as St. John's Church) is a Lutheran church in Tampere, Finland, and the seat of the Diocese of Tampere. The building was designed in the National Romanti ...
, the Tampere Central Fire Station and the National Bank Building in Tampere.[ At an early stage, the use of ]red brick
A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
as a material in the industrial buildings along Tammerkoski, such as the Finlayson and Tampella
Oy Tampella Ab was a Finnish heavy industry manufacturer, a maker of paper machines, locomotives, military weaponry, as well as wood-based products such as packaging. The company was based mainly in the Naistenlahti district of the city o ...
factories, has left a strong imaginary mark on the city.[
]
Functionalism and modernism
Post-Art Nouveau
Art Nouveau (; ) is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. The style is known by different names in different languages: in German, in Italian, in Catalan, and also known as the Modern ...
classicism was largely Nordic,[ during which the Laikku Culture House, ]Hotel Tammer
Radisson Blu Grand Hotel Tammer is a historic hotel built in 1929, situated near Tammerkoski rapids in central Tampere, Finland.
History
The Hotel Tammer is one of Finland's oldest operating hotels. The building is listed as a part of Tammerkos ...
, the Tuulensuu House and the Viinikka Church were built in Tampere. After functionalism became the prevailing style in the 1930s, the Tampere Central Station
Tampere Central Station is a functionalist building in Tampere, Finland, designed by Eero Seppälä and Otto Flodin, completed in 1936. The station is one of the most important railway stations in Finland. In 2015, the Tampere Central Station was ...
, the Tempo House, a bus station and the Kauppi Hospital were built in Tampere. There is no single accepted designation for the post-war
In Western usage, the phrase post-war era (or postwar era) usually refers to the time since the end of World War II. More broadly, a post-war period (or postwar period) is the interval immediately following the end of a war. A post-war period ...
style, but the key representatives of the reconstruction period are the Bank of Finland House, the Amurinlinna House and the Pyynikki Swimming Hall. The rationalist buildings of the modernist period are represented by the University of Tampere
The University of Tampere (UTA) ( fi, Tampereen yliopisto (Tay), ) was a public university in Tampere, Finland that was merged with Tampere University of Technology to create the new Tampere University on 1 January 2019.
The university offered u ...
, the Tampere Central Hospital, Sampola, the School of Economics, Ratina Stadium
Tampere Stadium ( fi, Tampereen stadion), also known as Ratina Stadium ( fi, Ratinan stadion), designed by architect Timo Penttilä and completed in 1965, is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampere
Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city ...
and the Kaleva Church.[ After this, diverse modernism will be represented by, among others, the ]Metso Main Library
Tampere Central Library ( Finnish: ''Tampereen kaupungin pääkirjasto'') is the main municipal library in Tampere, Finland. It is also known as ''Metso'' ('Capercaillie'), due to its resemblance to the bird, when viewed from above. The library ...
, the Hervanta Operations Center, the Tampere Hall
sv, Tammerforshuset
, image = Tampere-talo panorama 2014.jpg
, caption = Tampere Hall in June 2014
, former_names =
, building_type =
, architectural_style = Postmodernism
, structural_system =
, ...
, the university extension and Nokia
Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...
's office building in Hatanpää.[
The city center of Tampere and also its western parts have been developed in a more modern direction since the 2010s,][ and the city aims to get the center to take on its future form by the 2030s.][ Plans have been drawn up for the Central Station area in particular in the form of the "Tampere Deck" project, in connection with which a new multi-purpose arena and ]high-rise building
A tower block, high-rise, apartment tower, residential tower, apartment block, block of flats, or office tower is a tall building, as opposed to a low-rise building and is defined differently in terms of height depending on the jurisdicti ...
s have been sent to the area.[ A light rail network has also been recently built in the ]downtown
''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...
area. Artificial island
An artificial island is an island that has been constructed by people rather than formed by natural means. Artificial islands may vary in size from small islets reclaimed solely to support a single pillar of a building or structure to those th ...
projects are planned on the shores of the lakes, which would create new residential area
A residential area is a land used in which housing predominates, as opposed to industrial and commercial areas.
Housing may vary significantly between, and through, residential areas. These include single-family housing, multi-family resi ...
s for several thousand inhabitants.[ The projects are estimated to cost several billion euros.][
]
Economy
The Tampere region, Pirkanmaa
Pirkanmaa (; sv, Birkaland; la, Birkaria, link=no), also known as ''Tampere Region'' in government documents, is a region of Finland. It borders the regions of Satakunta, South Ostrobothnia, Central Finland, Päijät-Häme, Kanta-Häme an ...
, which includes outlying municipalities, has around 509,000 residents,[ 244,000 employed people,][ and a turnover of 28 billion euros .][
According to the Tampere International Business Office, the area is strong in mechanical engineering and automation, information and communication technologies, and health and biotechnology, as well as pulp and paper industry education. Unemployment rate was 15.7% in August 2020.][ 70% of the areas jobs are in the service sector. Less than 20% are in the manufacturing sector. 34.5% of employed people live outside the Tampere municipality and commute to Tampere for work. Meanwhile, 15.6% of Tampere's residents work outside Tampere.][ In 2014 the largest employers were ]Kesko
sv, Kesko Abp
, logo = Kesko logo.svg
, logo_size = 150px
, type = Julkinen osakeyhtiö
, traded_as =
, foundation =
, location_city = Helsinki
, location_country = Finland
, key_people = Mikko Helander (President and CEO), Esa Kii ...
, Pirkanmaan Osuuskauppa, Alma Media
Alma Media Oyj is a Finnish media and digital service business company. Its best known products are ''Iltalehti'', ''Kauppalehti'', ''Talouselämä'', and .
In addition to news services, the company's products provide information related to li ...
and Posti Group.[
According to a study carried out by the Synergos Research and Training Center of the ]University of Tampere
The University of Tampere (UTA) ( fi, Tampereen yliopisto (Tay), ) was a public university in Tampere, Finland that was merged with Tampere University of Technology to create the new Tampere University on 1 January 2019.
The university offered u ...
, the total impact of tourism in the Tampere region in 2012 was more than 909 million euros. Tourism also brought 4,805 person-years to the region.[ The biggest single attraction in Tampere is the Särkänniemi ]amusement park
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...
, which had about 630,000 visitors in 2016.[ In addition, in 2015, 1,021,151 overnight stays were made in Tampere ]hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
s. The number exceeded the previous record year with more than 20,000 overnight stays. All that makes Tampere the second most popular city in Finland after Helsinki in terms of hotel stays. Leisure tourism accounted for 55,4% of overnight stays and occupational tourism for 43,2%. The occupancy rate of all accommodation establishments with more than 20 rooms was 57,0%, while that of accommodation establishments in the whole country was 48,3%.[
Tampere's economic profit in 2015 was the worst of big Finnish cities.][ In 2016 the loss of the fiscal year was 18,8 million euros.][ In the city's economy, the largest revenues come from taxes and government contributions. In 2015, the city received 761 million euros in municipal ]tax revenue
Tax revenue is the income that is collected by governments through taxation. Taxation is the primary source of government revenue. Revenue may be extracted from sources such as individuals, public enterprises, trade, royalties on natural resour ...
. In addition, 61,4 million euros came from corporate tax
A corporate tax, also called corporation tax or company tax, is a direct tax imposed on the income or capital of corporations or analogous legal entities. Many countries impose such taxes at the national level, and a similar tax may be imposed a ...
es and 64 million euros from property tax
A property tax or millage rate is an ad valorem tax on the value of a property.In the OECD classification scheme, tax on property includes "taxes on immovable property or net wealth, taxes on the change of ownership of property through inher ...
es.[ Tax revenues have not increased as expected in the 2010s, although the city's population has increased. This has been affected by high ]unemployment
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refe ...
.[
Tampere is headquarters for Bronto Skylift, an aerial rescue and aerial work platform manufacturer.][
]
Energy
In 2013, Tampereen Energiantuotanto, which is part of the Tampereen Sähkölaitos Group, generated 1,254 GWh of electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...
and 2,184 GWh of district heating
District heating (also known as heat networks or teleheating) is a system for distributing heat generated in a centralized location through a system of insulated pipes for residential and commercial heating requirements such as space heating ...
. The two units of the Naistenlahti's power plant
A power station, also referred to as a power plant and sometimes generating station or generating plant, is an industrial facility for the generation of electric power. Power stations are generally connected to an electrical grid.
Many ...
generated a total of about 65% and the Lielahti
Lielahti ( sv, Lielax) is a suburb in the city of Tampere, Finland, with important industrial and commercial facilities. Lielahti was annexed to the city in 1950 from Ylöjärvi parish. Lielahti lies about 7 kilometres west from the city centre.
...
's power plant about 30% of the electricity production. In district heating production, the Naistenlahti power plant units accounted for 57% and the Lielahti power plant for 23%. Tampere's ten heating centers accounted for 21%.[
In 2013, the share of ]natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon d ...
in energy production was about 65%. Wood and peat
Peat (), also known as turf (), is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. The peatland ecosystem covers and ...
accounted for about 17%. In addition, hydropower
Hydropower (from el, ὕδωρ, "water"), also known as water power, is the use of falling or fast-running water to produce electricity or to power machines. This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of ...
and oil
An oil is any nonpolar chemical substance that is composed primarily of hydrocarbons and is hydrophobic (does not mix with water) & lipophilic (mixes with other oils). Oils are usually flammable and surface active. Most oils are unsaturated ...
were used.[ Emissions from energy production have decreased in the 21st century due to the growth of renewable forms of production and the modernization of the Naistenlahti plant. In 2013, approximately 669,000 tonnes of ]carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide ( chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is t ...
emissions and 297 tonnes of sulfur dioxide
Sulfur dioxide (IUPAC-recommended spelling) or sulphur dioxide (traditional Commonwealth English) is the chemical compound with the formula . It is a toxic gas responsible for the odor of burnt matches. It is released naturally by volcanic a ...
emissions were generated.[
]
Water and waste management
66,5% of Tampere's domestic water is surface water
Surface water is water located on top of land forming terrestrial (inland) waterbodies, and may also be referred to as ''blue water'', opposed to the seawater and waterbodies like the ocean.
The vast majority of surface water is produced by pre ...
and 33,5% groundwater
Groundwater is the water present beneath Earth's surface in rock and Pore space in soil, soil pore spaces and in the fractures of stratum, rock formations. About 30 percent of all readily available freshwater in the world is groundwater. A unit ...
. 58% of the water was diverted to economic use and 13% to industrial use. In addition to Tampere, Tampereen Vesi manages water in Pirkkala
Pirkkala (; sv, Birkala) is a municipality of Finland. It is located some south-west from Tampere in the Pirkanmaa region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is , which makes ...
. Almost all surface water comes from Lake Roine. In addition, Tampereen Vesi has four surface water plants in Lake Näsijärvi and five groundwater intakes.[ Tampereen Vesi is 96% responsible for the wastewater of Tampere, Kangasala, Pirkkala and ]Ylöjärvi
Ylöjärvi () is a town and a municipality in the Pirkanmaa region, northwest of Tampere and north of the capital city Helsinki in Finland. The town has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population densit ...
. In 2012, a total of 31,9 million cubic meters of wastewater
Wastewater is water generated after the use of freshwater, raw water, drinking water or saline water in a variety of deliberate applications or processes. Another definition of wastewater is "Used water from any combination of domestic, industrial ...
was treated in Tampere. The Viinikanlahti treatment plant
Water treatment is any process that improves the Water quality, quality of water to make it appropriate for a specific end-use. The end use may be drinking water, drinking, industrial water supply, irrigation, river flow maintenance, water recrea ...
treats more than 75% of wastewater.[
Pirkanmaan Jätehuolto handles ]waste management
Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal.
This includes the collection, transport, treatment and disposal of waste, together with monitorin ...
in Tampere. It has waste treatment facilities in Nokia
Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...
's Lake Koukkujärvi and Tampere's Lake Tarastenjärvi.[
]
Demographics
Tampere has 238,671 inhabitants, making it the third most populous municipality in Finland and the tenth in the Nordics. The Tampere region, which has 410,689 inhabitants, is the second largest urban area after Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
.[ 8.6% of the population has a foreign background, which is lower than Helsinki and ]Turku
Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
but higher than Oulu
Oulu ( , ; sv, Uleåborg ) is a city, municipality and a seaside resort of about 210,000 inhabitants in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in northern Finland and the fifth most populous in the country after ...
.[
The demographic structure of Tampere shows the city's position as a very popular place to ]study
Study or studies may refer to:
General
* Education
** Higher education
* Clinical trial
* Experiment
* Observational study
* Research
* Study skills, abilities and approaches applied to learning
Other
* Study (art), a drawing or series of ...
, as the number of young adults is clearly higher than in other municipalities in the region. At the end of 2012, the population dependency ratio
The dependency ratio is an age-population ratio of those typically not in the labor force (the ''dependent'' part ages 0 to 14 and 65+) and those typically in the labor force (the ''productive'' part ages 15 to 64). It is used to measure the press ...
was 45. About 17,3% of the population was over 65 years of age.[ Just over half of the population is women, as in the whole country. The population is fairly educated, with two-thirds of those over 15 having completed post-primary education.][
Tampere is Finland's largest monolingual Finnish-speaking municipality. In 2021, 1,321 Swedish-speakers lived in Tampere, ie their share of the Tampere population was about half a per cent. This is the second largest number of Swedish-speakers in monolingual Finnish-speaking municipalities after ]Kaarina
Kaarina (; sv, S:t Karins, i.e. " Saint Catherine's") is a small town and municipality of Finland.
It is located in the Southwest Finland region and is a neighbouring town of Turku, which is the capital of Southwest Finland, therefore Kaarina ...
. Kaarina and Tampere are also the only monolingual Finnish-speaking municipalities with a separate Swedish-speaking congregation. In 1900, Swedish-speakers accounted for more than six per cent of Tampere's population and in 1950 for less than two per cent.[ Speakers of languages other than Finnish or Swedish account for 8.5% of the population, similar to the national average of 8.3%. The most spoken languages among them are Russian (1.3%), ]Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
(1.0%), Farsi
Persian (), also known by its endonym Farsi (, ', ), is a Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Persian is a pluricentric language predominantly spoken an ...
(0.8%) and English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
(0.6%).
At the end of 2018, there were a total of 140,039 dwellings in Tampere, of which 127,639 were permanently inhabited and 12,400 were not permanently inhabited.[ Of these, 74% were ]apartment building
An apartment (American English), or flat (British English, Indian English, South African English), is a self-contained housing unit (a type of residential real estate) that occupies part of a building, generally on a single story. There are ma ...
s, 14 detached house
A stand-alone house (also called a single-detached dwelling, detached residence or detached house) is a free-standing residential building. It is sometimes referred to as a single-family home, as opposed to a multi-family residential dwelli ...
s, 10 terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace or terraced house ( UK) or townhouse ( US) is a form of medium-density housing that originated in Europe in the 16th century, whereby a row of attached dwellings share side walls. In the United St ...
s and 2% other residential buildings. Between 2002 and 2020, more than 40,000 new apartments have been completed in Tampere.[ Living space has been growing for a long time, although growth virtually came to a halt after 2008. The average living space at the end of 2012 was about 36,8 m2 per inhabitant, compared to about 19,2 m2 in 1970 and about 31,8 m2 in 1990. The average population of a dwelling in 2012 was about 1,8 inhabitants.][
For more than ten years, Tampere has been one of the most migratory municipalities, as in January–September 2021, more than 1,930 new residents moved to Tampere. ]Nokia
Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...
, Kangasala and Lempäälä
Lempäälä (; Swedish also ) is a municipality in the Pirkanmaa region of Finland with inhabitants (). Lempäälä is located south of the city of Tampere. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. The population density is .
The ...
, which are among Tampere's neighboring municipalities, have also been identified as the most migratory municipalities, which rose to the list of the 20 most attractive municipalities.[ Even during ]COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, Tampere has become Finland's most attractive area for internal migration, as Tampere gained the most migration gains in 2020.[
]
Urban areas
In 2019, out of the total population of 238,140, 231,648 people lived in urban areas
An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...
and 3,132 in sparsely populated areas, while the coordinates of 3,360 people were unknown. This made Tampere's degree of urbanization 98.7%.[ The urban population in the municipality was divided between three statistical urban areas as follows:][
]
Education
The comprehensive education
Comprehensive may refer to:
* Comprehensive layout, the page layout of a proposed design as initially presented by the designer to a client.
*Comprehensive school, a state school that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement ...
is given mainly in Finnish but the city has special bilingual groups where students study in Finnish and a second language (English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
, French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
or German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
).[ Furthermore, there is a private Swedish-speaking school in the Kaakinmaa district (Swedish Svenska samskolan i Tammerfors) that covers all levels of education from ]preschool
A preschool, also known as nursery school, pre-primary school, or play school or creche, is an educational establishment or learning space offering early childhood education to children before they begin compulsory education at primary sch ...
to high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
.[
There are three institutions of higher education in the Tampere area totaling 40,000 students: the university and two polytechnic institutions ( fi, ammattikorkeakoulu). ]Tampere University
Tampere University (, shortened TAU) is a Finnish university that was established on 1 January, 2019 as a merger between the University of Tampere and Tampere University of Technology. The new university is also the major shareholder of Tampere U ...
(TUNI) has over 20,000 students and is located in two campuses, one in the Kalevanharju district, close to the city centre, and one in Hervanta
Hervanta is a large suburb, or satellite city, of Tampere in Finland, located next to Hallila some 10 km south of the city centre.
Home to a population of over 26,000, Hervanta is best known for its prefabricated blocks of flats. The total ...
, in the southern part of the city. The institution was formed in 2019 as a result of the merge of University of Tampere
The University of Tampere (UTA) ( fi, Tampereen yliopisto (Tay), ) was a public university in Tampere, Finland that was merged with Tampere University of Technology to create the new Tampere University on 1 January 2019.
The university offered u ...
(UTA) and Tampere University of Technology
Tampere University of Technology (TUT) ( fi, Tampereen teknillinen yliopisto (TTY)) was Finland's second-largest university in engineering sciences. The university was located in Hervanta, a suburb of Tampere. It was merged with the University o ...
(TUT). TUNI is also the major shareholder of the Tampere University of Applied Sciences
Tampere University of Applied Sciences ( fi, Tampereen ammattikorkeakoulu, TAMK) is a university of applied sciences (a polytechnic) in the region of Pirkanmaa, Finland. Together with Tampere University, TAMK constitutes the Tampere highe ...
(''Tampereen ammattikorkeakoulu'', TAMK), a polytechnic counting about 10,000 students.[ The Police University College, the polytechnic institution serving all of Finland in its field of specialization, is also located in Tampere.][
Tampere University Hospital (''Tampereen yliopistollinen sairaala'', TAYS) in the Kauppi district, one of the main hospitals in Finland, is affiliated with Tampere University. It is a teaching hospital with 34 medical specializations.
The Nurmi district in the northern part of city also houses the ]Tampere Christian School
Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population ...
(''Tampereen kristillinen koulu''), which operates on a co-Christianity, Christian basis and is maintained by the Adventist Church of Finland, offering free basic education based on Christian basic values and outlook on life for all grades of primary school.[
]
Arts and culture
Tampere is known for its active cultural life. Some of the most popular writers in Finland, such as Väinö Linna, Kalle Päätalo, and Hannu Salama, hail from Tampere. These authors are known particularly as writers depicting the lives of working-class people, thanks to their respective backgrounds as members of the working class. Also from such a background was the poet Lauri Viita of the Pispala
Pispala is a city area 2.5 km from the centre of Tampere, Finland. It is located on the northern slope of Pispalanharju, the highest esker in Finland.
Together with Pyynikki, Pispala is widely considered the most beautiful area of Tamper ...
district, which was also the original home of the aforementioned Hannu Salama. On 1 October, Tampere celebrates the annual Tampere Day ( fi, Tampereen päivä), which hosts a variety of public events.[
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Media
Tampere is a strong ''media city'', as the television center in Tohloppi and Ristimäki
Ristimäki is a neighbourhood in the city of Tampere, Finland, It is bordered on the north by Tohloppi, on the east by Epilänharju, on the west by Tesomajärvi and on the south by the Tampere-Pori railway. Mediapolis, YLE
Yleisradio Oy ( ...
districts has had a nationwide Yle TV2
Yle TV2 ( fi, Yle TV Kaksi; sv, Yle TV Två) is a Finnish television channel owned and operated by Yle. TV2 was launched in 1965 as the successor to the former television channels TES-TV (Tesvisio) and Tamvisio, and broadcasts public service ...
television channel since the 1970s,[ and Finnish radio, for example, began in Tampere when Arvi Hauvonen founded the first broadcasting station in 1923.][ Yle TV2 has its roots in Tamvisio, which was transferred to ]Yleisradio
Yleisradio Oy ( Finnish, literally "General Radio Ltd." or "General Broadcast Ltd."; abbr. Yle ; sv, Rundradion Ab, italics=no), translated to English as the Finnish Broadcasting Company, is Finland's national public broadcasting company, found ...
in 1964. ''Kakkoskanava'' ("Channel 2") has been a major influence in Tampere, and several well-known television programs and series have been shot in the city,[ such as TV comedies ''Tankki täyteen'', ''Reinikainen (television series), Reinikainen'' and ''Kummeli''. The Ruutu+ streaming service's popular crime drama television series ''Lakeside Murders'' ( fi, Koskinen), based on the ''Koskinen'' book series by Seppo Jokinen, is also produced and filmed in Tampere.][
The Tampere Film Festival, an annual international short film event, is held every March.][ Tampere has also served as a filming location for international film productions, most notably the 1993 British comedy film ''The Big Freeze (film), The Big Freeze'' and the 2022 American sci-fi film ''Dual (2022 film), Dual''.
In 2014, ''Aamulehti'', which was published in Tampere and was founded in 1881,][ was the third largest newspaper in Finland in terms of circulation, after ''Helsingin Sanomat'' and ''Ilta-Sanomat''. The circulation of the magazine was 106,842 (2014).][ In addition, a free city newspaper ''Tamperelainen'' (literally translated "Tamperean", meaning person who live in Tampere) will be published in the city.][ In November 2016, the ''Tamperelainen'' was awarded the second best city newspaper in Finland.][
The city is also known as the home of the popular Hydraulic Press Channel on YouTube, which originates from a machine shop owned by Lauri Vuohensilta.][
]
Food
A local food speciality is ''mustamakkara'', which resembles the black pudding of northern England. It is a black sausage made by mixing pork, pig's blood and crushed rye and flour and is stuffed into the intestines of an animal. It is commonly eaten with lingonberry sauce. Especially Tammelantori square in the district of Tammela is known for its ''mustamakkara'' kiosks.[
A newer Tampere tradition are ''munkki'', fresh sugary doughnuts that are sold in several cafés around Tampere, but most traditionally in Pyynikki observation tower.][
One of the specialties of Tampere's local barbecue dishes include the peremech ( fi, pärämätsi) based on traditional Tatars, Tatar food. It is a pie reminiscent of Karelian pasty with seasoned ground meat inside.][
In the 1980s, in addition to ''mustamakkara'' and barley bread, the old parish dish of Tampere was also called a potato soup, home-made small beer (''kotikalja''), a sweetened lingonberry porridge and a sweetened potato casserole (''Imelletty perunalaatikko'').][
Since 1991, the two-day fish market event (''Tampereen kalamarkkinat'') in Laukontori attracts as many as 80,000–100,000 visitors in year, and is held both in the spring on ''vappu'' and in the autumn on Tampere Day.][
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Music
Tampere is home to the Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra (''Tampere Filharmonia''), which is one of only two full-sized symphony orchestras in Finland; Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, the other one is located in Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
. The orchestra's home venue is the Tampere Hall
sv, Tammerforshuset
, image = Tampere-talo panorama 2014.jpg
, caption = Tampere Hall in June 2014
, former_names =
, building_type =
, architectural_style = Postmodernism
, structural_system =
, ...
,[ and their concerts include classical, popular, and film music. Tampere Music Festivals organises three international music events: Tampere Jazz Happening, The Tampere Jazz Happening each November, and in alternate years Tampere Vocal Music Festival, The Tampere Vocal Music Festival and the Tampere Biennale. Professional education in many fields of classical music, including performing arts, pedagogic arts, and composition, is provided by ]Tampere University of Applied Sciences
Tampere University of Applied Sciences ( fi, Tampereen ammattikorkeakoulu, TAMK) is a university of applied sciences (a polytechnic) in the region of Pirkanmaa, Finland. Together with Tampere University, TAMK constitutes the Tampere highe ...
and Tampere Music school, Conservatoire.
Tammerfest, Tampere's urban rock festival, is held every July.[ The Blockfest, which also takes place in Tampere during the summer months,][ is the largest hip hop music, hip hop event in the Nordic countries.][ The Tampere Floral Festival is an annual event, held each Summer.
''Manserock'' became a general term for rock music from Tampere, which was essentially rock music with Finnish lyrics. Manserock was especially popular during the 1970s and 1980s, and its most popular artists included Juice Leskinen, Virtanen, Kaseva, Popeda, and Eppu Normaali. In 1977, Poko Rekords, the first record company in Tampere, was founded.][
In the 2010s, there has been a lot of popular musical activity in Tampere, particularly in the fields of rock and Heavy metal music, heavy/black metal; one of the most important metal music events in Tampere is the Sauna Open Air Metal Festival.][ Some of the most popular bands based in Tampere include Negative (Finnish band), Negative, Uniklubi, and Lovex. Tampere also has an active electronic music scene. Tampere hosts an annual World of Tango Festival (''Maailmantango''),][ which is one of the most significant tango events in Finland next to the Tangomarkkinat of Seinäjoki.
]
Theatre
Tampere has a lengthy tradition of theater, with established institutions such as Tampere Workers' Theatre, Tampereen Työväen Teatteri, Tampere Theatre, Tampereen Teatteri, and Pyynikin Kesäteatteri, which is an open-air theatre with the oldest revolving auditorium in Europe. The longest-running directors of the Tampereen Teatteri include Eino Salmelainen and Rauli Lehtonen, and the Tampereen Työväen Teatteri has Kosti Elo, Eino Salmelainen and Lasse Pöysti.[ Tampere Theatre Festival, The Tampere Theatre Festival (''Tampereen teatterikesä'') is an international theatre festival held in the city each August. Tampere also has the Tampere Opera, founded in 1946.][
Tampere's other professional theaters are Teatteri Siperia; restaurant theater Teatteripalatsi; Teatteri Telakka, known for its artistic experiments; Ahaa Teatteri, which specializes in children's and young people's plays; puppet theater Teatteri Mukamas, and Tanssiteatteri MD, specializes in contemporary dance performances.][ In addition, there are also three Movie theater, cinemas in Tampere: two Finnkino's theaters, Cine Atlas and Finnkino Plevna, Plevna,][ and private Arthouse Cinema Niagara,][ which serves as the main venue for the Cinemadrome Festival, which presents Horror film, horror, Action film, action, Science fiction film, sci-fi, Trash film, trash, and other cult films.][ Local cinemas also included the historic Imatra (cinema), Imatra, formerly located in the Kyttälä district, which was completely destroyed on a fire in the midst of a 1924 film ''Wages of Virtue'' on 23 October 1927, killing 21 people.][
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Religion
As is the case with most of the rest of Finland, most Tampere citizens belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. One Lutheran church in Tampere is Finlayson Church in the Finlayson (district), district by the same name. Tampere also has a variety of other religious services spanning from traditional to Charismatic Christianity, charismatic. There are also some English speaking services, such as the Tampere English Service, an international community affiliated with the (''Tampereen helluntaiseurakunta'').[ English services of the International Congregation of Christ the King (ICCK) are organized by the Anglican Church in Finland and the Lutheran Parishes of Tampere. The Catholic parish of the Holy Cross][ also offers services in Finnish, Polish and English. Other churches may also have English speaking ministries. Tampere is the center of a the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, LDS stake (Latter Day Saints), stake (diocese). Other churches in Tampere are the Baptists in Finland, Baptist Church, the Evangelical Free Church, the Evangelical Lutheran Mission Diocese of Finland, the Finnish Orthodox Church and the Nokia Revival.
There was an organized Jewish community until 1981. Though a small number of Jews remain in Tampere, organized communal life ended at that time.][
There are three registered Muslim communities in Tampere. The biggest of them being Tampere Islam Society with over 1500 members.][
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City rivalry with Turku
Tampere ostensibly has a long-standing mutual feud with the city of Turku
Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
, the first capital of Finland, and they tend to compete for the title of being the "second grand city of Finland" after Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
.[ This rivalry is largely expressed in jokes in one city about the other; prominent targets are the traditional Tampere food, ''mustamakkara'', the state of the Aura River (Finland), Aura River in Turku, and the regional accents. Tampere is well known as a food destination because of its food culture. Since 1997, students at Tampere have made annual excursions to Turku to jump on the market square, doing their part to undo the post-glacial rebound and push the city back into the Baltic Sea.]
Main sights
One of the main tourist attractions is the Särkänniemi amusement park
An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, as well as other events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central ...
, which includes the landmark Näsinneula tower, topped by a revolving restaurant. In addition to these, it used to house a dolphinarium. Other sites of interest are Tampere Cathedral
Tampere Cathedral ( fi, Tampereen tuomiokirkko, sv, Tammerfors domkyrka; originally known as St. John's Church) is a Lutheran church in Tampere, Finland, and the seat of the Diocese of Tampere. The building was designed in the National Romanti ...
, Tampere City Hall, Tampere Central Library ''Metso'' ("Western capercaillie, Capercaillie"), Kaleva Church (both designed by Reima Pietilä), Tampere Hall, the Tampere Hall (along Hämeenkatu
Hämeenkatu is the main street of Tampere, Finland, located in the city center. The boulevard is roughly a kilometre long, and wide (driveway and sidewalk) at its widest point.
Hämeenkatu is a boulevard, which begins from the east at the Tampe ...
) for conferences and concerts, the Tampere Market Hall and historical Pyynikki observation tower.
Tampere has at least seven hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...
s, the most noteworthy of which are Hotel Tammer
Radisson Blu Grand Hotel Tammer is a historic hotel built in 1929, situated near Tammerkoski rapids in central Tampere, Finland.
History
The Hotel Tammer is one of Finland's oldest operating hotels. The building is listed as a part of Tammerkos ...
, Hotel Ilves, and Hotel Torni Tampere, Hotel Torni, the tallest hotel building in Finland.[ The Holiday Club, Holiday Club Tampere spa is also located in the Lapinniemi, Lapinniemi district on the shores of Lake Näsijärvi.][ There are also many significant shopping centers in the city center of Tampere and its suburbs; the most notable shopping centers are Ratina (shopping centre), Ratina, Koskikeskus (shopping centre), Koskikeskus, DUO (Tampere), DUO, Like (shopping mall), Like, and Tullintori.
Tampere is also home to one of the last museums in the world dedicated to ]Vladimir Lenin
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 1 ...
. The museum is housed in the Tampere Workers' Hall
Tampere Workers' Hall (also known as the Puistotorni, ''The Park Tower'') is a conference and congress centre in Kaakinmaa, Tampere, Finland, located in the corner between Hämeenpuisto and Hallituskatu. It was built in 1900 by the Tampere Worke ...
(along Hallituskatu (Tampere), Hallituskatu) where during a subsequent Bolshevik conference in the city, Lenin met Joseph Stalin for the first time.[ Lenin moved to Tampere in August 1905, but eventually fled for Sweden in November 1907 when being pursued by the Russian Okhrana. Lenin would not return to any part of the ]Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War ...
until ten years later, when he heard of the start of the Russian Revolution of 1917.
There are many museums and galleries, including:
* The Vapriikki Museum Centre[ which includes the Natural History Museum of Tampere, Finnish Hockey Hall of Fame, Finnish Museum of Games, Post Museum and the ''Shoe Museum''
* Hatanpää Manor and Hatanpää Arboretum
* The Näsilinna Palace
* Tampere Art Museum][
* Tampere Lenin Museum
* The Moomin Museum,][ about Moomins
* Rupriikki Media Museum
* Spy Museum in Siperia][
* Workers' housing museum in Amuri.][
* Finland's largest glass sculpture, owned by the City of Tampere, "Timo Sarpaneva#Glass, Pack Ice / The Mirror of the Sea" by the renowned artist Timo Sarpaneva, was installed in the entrance lobby of the downtown shopping mall KoskiKeskus until it was moved to a warehouse.][
]
Pispala
Pispala is a ridge located between the two lakes. It is divided into Ylä-Pispala
Pispala is a city area 2.5 km from the centre of Tampere, Finland. It is located on the northern slope of Pispalanharju, the highest esker in Finland.
Together with Pyynikki, Pispala is widely considered the most beautiful area of Tampere ...
("Upper Pispala") and Ala-Pispala
Pispala is a city area 2.5 km from the centre of Tampere, Finland. It is located on the northern slope of Pispalanharju, the highest esker in Finland.
Together with Pyynikki, Pispala is widely considered the most beautiful area of Tamper ...
("Lower Pispala"). It's the highest gravel ridge in the world, raising above Lake Pyhäjärvi and around above sea level. It was used to house the majority of industrial labour in the late 19th and early 20th century, when it was part of Pirkkala, Suur-Pirkkala and its successor Nokia, Finland, Pohjois-Pirkkala. It was a free area to be built upon by the working-class people working in Tampere factories. It joined Tampere in 1937. Currently it is a residential area undergoing significant redevelopment and together with neighbouring Pyynikki
Pyynikki ( sv, Pynike) is a district and a nature reserve in Tampere, Finland. It is located in the Pyynikinharju ridge, between the city center and the western district of Pispala. Pyynikinharju is the highest esker
An esker, eskar, esch ...
it forms an important historical area of Tampere.[
]
Events
Sports
Tampere's sporting scene is mainly driven by ice hockey.[ The first Finnish ice hockey match was played in Tampere, on the ice of ]Pyhäjärvi
Pyhäjärvi (1993–1995 ''Pyhäsalmi'') is a town and municipality in the south of Northern Ostrobothnia region, Finland. Pyhäjärvi also borders the Northern Savonia and Central Finland regions. The town belongs to the subregion of Nivala–Ha ...
. Tampere is nicknamed the hometown of Finnish ice hockey. Three exceptional ice hockey teams come from Tampere: Tappara, Ilves and KOOVEE (ice hockey), KOOVEE. Especially both Tappara and Ilves have had a great impact on Finnish ice hockey culture and are among the most successful teams in Finland;[ of these, Ilves was the first Tampere-based hockey team to win the 1935–36 SM-sarja season, 1935-1936 Finnish championship.][ The Finnish ice hockey museum, and the first ice hockey arena to be built in Finland, the Tampereen jäähalli, Hakametsä arena, are both located in Tampere.][ Construction of a new main ice hockey arena, Nokia Arena (Tampere), Tampere Deck Arena,][ began in 2018, and was first opened to the public on 3 December 2021, although the official opening date was on 15 December.][ The name of the new arena was supposed to be ''UROS LIVE'',][ but due to the financial difficulties of the sponsor behind it, the name was abandoned.][ After that, ]Nokia Corporation
Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...
was chosen as the new sponsor on 19 November 2021, and the arena was renamed as ''Nokia Arena''.[ The arena served as the main venue for the 2022 IIHF World Championship.][
Like ice hockey, association football is also a popular sport in Tampere. Ilves (football), Ilves, the professional football club of Tampere,][ alone has over 4,000 players in its football teams, while Tampere boasts over 100 (mostly junior) football teams. Basketball is another popular sport in Tampere; the city has three basketball teams with big junior activity and one of them, Tampereen Pyrintö (basketball), Tampereen Pyrintö,][ plays on the highest level (Korisliiga) and was the Finnish Champion in 2010, 2011, and 2014.][
Tampere Saints is the American football club in the city, that won division 2 in 2015 and plays in the Vaahteraliiga, Maple League (division 1) in summer 2017.][ Tampere has a baseball and softball club, the Tampere Tigers, which plays in the Baseball Finnish Championship Series, top division of Finnish baseball.][ In addition to all of the above, volleyball, wrestling and boxing are also among Tampere's best-known sports.][
Tampere hosted some of the Football at the 1952 Summer Olympics, preliminaries for the 1952 Summer Olympics, the 1965 World Ice Hockey Championships][ and was co-host of the EuroBasket 1967. The city also hosted two ICF Canoe Sprint World Championships, canoe sprint world championships, in 1973 and 1983. In 1977, Tampere hosted the World Rowing Junior Championships and in 1995 the Senior World Rowing Championships. Recently, Tampere was the host of the 10th European Youth Olympic Festival on 17–25 July 2009 and the 2010 World Ringette Championships on 1–6 November at Hakametsä arena.
Tampere will host the 2023 European Masters Games from 26 June to 9 July.]
Concerts
Ratina Stadium
Tampere Stadium ( fi, Tampereen stadion), also known as Ratina Stadium ( fi, Ratinan stadion), designed by architect Timo Penttilä and completed in 1965, is a multi-purpose stadium in Tampere
Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city ...
of Tampere, in the Ratina (district), district by the same name, has served as the venue for many of the most significant concerts, most notably in connection with the ''Endless Forms Most Beautiful World Tour'' in 2015 by the band Nightwish.[ Other noteworthy tours from other bands held at Ratina Stadium include Iron Maiden (''Somewhere Back in Time World Tour'', 2008), Bruce Springsteen (''Working on a Dream Tour'', 2009), AC/DC (''Black Ice World Tour'', 2010), Red Hot Chili Peppers (''I'm with You World Tour'', 2012), Bon Jovi (''Because We Can (concert tour), Because We Can World Tour'', 2013), Robbie Williams (''The Heavy Entertainment Show Tour'', 2017) and Rammstein (''Rammstein Stadium Tour'', 2019).
]
Transport
Tampere is an important railroad hub in Finland and there are direct railroad connections to, for example, Helsinki
Helsinki ( or ; ; sv, Helsingfors, ) is the Capital city, capital, primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Finland, most populous city of Finland. Located on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, it is the seat of the region of U ...
, Turku
Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
and the Port of Turku, Oulu
Oulu ( , ; sv, Uleåborg ) is a city, municipality and a seaside resort of about 210,000 inhabitants in the region of North Ostrobothnia, Finland. It is the most populous city in northern Finland and the fifth most populous in the country after ...
, Jyväskylä, and Pori
)
, website www.pori.fi
Pori (; sv, Björneborg ) is a city and municipality on the west coast of Finland. The city is located some from the Gulf of Bothnia, on the estuary of the Kokemäki River, west of Tampere, north of Turku and north- ...
. Every day about 150 trains with an annual total of 8 million passengers arrive and depart in the Tampere Central Station, Tampere Central Railway Station, which is located in the city center.[ There are also frequent bus connections to destinations around Finland. To the south of Tampere, there is the Tampere Ring Road, which is important for car traffic and which is part of Finnish highways number Finnish national road 3, 3 (on the west side) and number Finnish national road 9, 9 (on the east side). The main stretch of the ring road sees over 50,000 vehicles per day,][ and, according to the ELY Centre of Pirkanmaa, the western part of the ring road is the busiest road in Finland, if highway and ring road connections in the Helsinki metropolitan area are excluded.][ There are also plans for another ring road project that would run from Pirkkala to Tampere's ]