Car passengers to be tested coronavirus at Helsinki Port

The passengers who will be arriving at the West Harbour and Katajanokka in Helsinki Port with car will be offered to take voluntary coronavirus test from Tuesday, said the City of Helsinki in a press release on Monday.

Testing for car passengers has already been made available at the Vuosaari Harbour since 27 January.

While onboard, passengers are requested to fill in the symptom questionnaire and personal information form and to prepare to present any relevant certificates with either a passport or ID card at the testing and information point.

The coronavirus test and guidance will be offered to passengers by the car lane once they have driven their cars off the ship.

“It is wonderful news that our testing can now cover all passengers arriving in Helsinki by ship. This enables us to prevent the spread of coronavirus in Finland and Helsinki through ports even more efficiently than before,” said City of Helsinki’s Health and Substance Abuse Services Director Leena Turpeinen.

“We want to make the new drive-in tests as smooth as possible for passengers arriving in cars. That said, they may cause slight delays. This is crucial, and I am confident that people understand the importance of testing,” added Turpeinen.

Passengers arriving in Finland and Helsinki will need to present a certificate of COVID-19 infection that has taken place within the last six months, a negative test result (tested within 72 hours) or a coronavirus test appointment booked through the Finentry web service.

A 14-day voluntary quarantine is recommended for all passengers arriving in Finland from countries where the coronavirus incidence exceeds 25 per 100,000 people measured over two weeks.