Tampere Tramway in 2025 – Six New Stops, Four New Tram Cars and Over 20 Million Passenger Journeys
The year 2025 was eventful for the Tampere Tramway. The new tramway extension from Santalahti to Lentävänniemi opened in January, while construction of the Pirkkala–Linnainmaa tramway progressed rapidly. The tram fleet was expanded with new tram cars, and passenger numbers continued to rise. Here are the key figures of 2025
Major milestones of the year
- The tramway extension from Santalahti to Lentävänniemi opened on 7 January.
- The opening was celebrated at the Lentävänniemi Tram Festival which attracted approximately 6,500 visitors.
- With the extension, the Tampere Tramway network now totals 24 km.
- Six new stops were added, bringing the total number of stops to 37.
- Construction was completed on schedule and is estimated to come in over EUR 7.5 million under budget.The final amount will be confirmed after the warranty period.
- Tampere tram service completed its fourth year on 9 August. More than 67 million journeys have been made since the launch.
- In October 2024, the city councils of Tampere and Pirkkala decided to build the Pirkkala–Linnainmaa tramway. The Tampere Tramway’s Pirkkala–Linnainmaa Alliance began construction in December 2024. One year later, 30 per cent of the work is completed.
- The project is implemented in two phases, so that in the first phase, tramway sections from Sori Square to Partola and from Kauppi campus to Ruotula will be built. The aim is to start traffic in August 2028.
- In phase 2, the plan is to build sections from Partola to Suuppa and from Ruotula to Linnainmaa. The implementation of phase 2 is pending state funding. Service to Suuppa and Linnainmaa could start in 2032.
- In the autumn, work began on the project plan for extending the tramway from Hiedanranta through Lielahti to Ylöjärvi.
- The Lielahti–Ylöjärvi Tramway Project Plan will be completed in spring 2027. After that, the cities of Tampere and Ylöjärvi can decide on starting the implementation planning phase.
- Planning of the Vuores tramway began in spring. The drafting of the general plan started on Vuoreksen Puistokatu, which is a 4-kilometre section of the Vuores tramway line. It is planned that the line would run from Sarankulmankatu via Lakalaiva and Lahdesjärvi to Vuores.
- Project and implementation planning are expected for 2036–2039, with construction anticipated around the late 2030s and early 2040s.
Growing Popularity and Passenger Numbers
- According to the Tampere Tramway consumer survey, 91% of Tampere residents and 72% of Pirkkala residents view the Tramway positively.
- Erittäin myönteisesti Ratikkaan suhtautuvien määrä on kasvanut Tampereella 2 prosenttiyksikköä edellisvuodesta
- Pirkkalassa tutkimus tehtiin ensimmäistä kertaa helmikuussa 2025. Siellä myönteinen suhtautuminen Ratikkaan on kasvanut lokakuun seurantatutkimuksen mukaan kuusi prosenttiyksikköä
- According to the Customer satisfaction survey, passengers are very happy with the service level of the Tramway: the average score in 2025 was 4.58 out of 5.
- A total of 20.5 million journeys were made in 2025 (compared to 16.6 million in 2024 and 14.7 million in 2023).
- A new single‑day record was set on 30 April (May Day Eve): 82,062 boardings, exceeding the 80,000 daily passenger threshold for the first time.
Tram Cars
- In 2025, Tampere received four new tram cars, bringing the fleet to 28 cars in total.
- The Tampere Tram vehicles, in order of arrival, are named:
Lyyli, Valma, Saaga, Lempi, Iisakki, Visa, Helinä, Atro, Aava, Tellervo, Tuure, Kukka, Ritva, Ensio, Urho, Päiviö, Aliisa, Olga, Veera, Hilla, Martta, Pirkka, Sointu, Sampsa, Paavo, Arsi, Elias and Oiva. - In December 2024, Tampere Tramway Ltd. placed an additional order for new vehicles for the Pirkkala–Linnainmaa tramline.
- With the new order, Tampere will have sixteen 37‑meter trams and nineteen longer 47‑meter trams by summer 2028.
- The first long tram vehicle will arrive for type testing in summer 2026
- The current 37‑metre trams have capacity for 264 passengers, while the longer trams can carry 345 passengers.
- In 2025, the Tampere Tramway fleet accumulated over 2.2 million operational kilometres.
- Since the beginning of operations, Tampere Tram vehicles have accumulated nearly 7.9 million kilometres (including training, testing and passenger service.)
The Tampere Tramway Family
- Approximately 600 tramway professionals work in various organisations as part of the Tampere Tramway Family.
- Most work in the Pirkkala–Linnainmaa Alliance of the Tampere Tramway, responsible for planning and constructing the new Pirkkala–Linnainmaa tramway section.
- Tampere Tramway Ltd. employs 21 people.
- VR employs 122 tram drivers, 7 traffic controllers, and 7 administrative employees.
- The Tampere Tramway Maintenance Alliance employs 41 full‑time staff plus 6 subcontractor employees
- Škoda Transtech employs 28 people in fleet maintenance.
- Tampere Tram is part of the Nysse public transport product family.
Tramway Art and Pop‑Up Performances
- The construction of the Pirkkala–Linnainmaa tramway section extends the Tramway Art Programme
- According to the General Plan for Art on Tampere Tramway (in Finnish), art is implemented in two phases following the tramway construction schedule. In Phase 1 (2024–2028), art is planned for five stops between Sori Square and Partola, and between Kauppi Campus and Ruotula. Additional artworks will be installed on traffic bollards along the mixed traffic lane on Nuolialantie.
- The first artist selection was made for artwork at the Ruotula stop (link to a Finnish news article)
- The call for artists for the first Pirkkala tram stop is underway until 22 January, 2026
- An Art Tram has been operating as part of the Tampere streetscape since 2021. In 2025, three new artworks were selected for the Art Tram, each displayed for one year. The first to enter service was “Morottavat metsäneläimet” (Greeting Forest Animals) by Ilai Elias Lehto.
- According to the General Plan for Art on Tampere Tramway (in Finnish), art is implemented in two phases following the tramway construction schedule. In Phase 1 (2024–2028), art is planned for five stops between Sori Square and Partola, and between Kauppi Campus and Ruotula. Additional artworks will be installed on traffic bollards along the mixed traffic lane on Nuolialantie.
- Nine local groups held pop‑up performances on the Art Tram during the year.
- New tramway art will also be added to already completed sections: Artist Tapio Haapala’s sculpture “Muurarin kevät” (Spring of the Bricklayer) will be installed on the Hiedanranta factory smokestack in spring 2026. The sketch of the work (link to a Finnish news article) was published in spring 2025.
Further information:
Pekka Sirviö
CEO
Tampere Tramway Ltd.
Tel.+358 (0)40 334 5798
firstname.lastname@tampereenraitiotie.fi