Collapse of Helsinki city centre tunnel project likely to shrink pedestrian centre

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The decision announced by the Social Democrats on the Helsinki City Council to drop plans for the construction of a tunnel beneath the centre of the city has confused the officials in charge of the design of Helsinki's planned car-free zone.
      "Part of the planned pedestrian centre cannot be implemented unless all traffic is transferred away from the streets", said Director Anneli Lahti from the Helsinki City Planning Department on Friday.
      Kaivokatu and both Esplanades would now be left outside the car-free zone, even though the initial plan was to direct the busy traffic of these streets into a tunnel beneath the centre.
     
The City Planning Department is now waiting for new instructions from the City Board. Over the past ten years, the Department has spent approximately EUR 630,000 for various consulting fees relating to the city centre tunnel project alone.
      "At the moment, we still have a valid decision from the City Board that a tunnel plan is to be made", argued Lahti.
      In practice, the City Board will now have to cancel the order it gave just ten months ago.
      Apart from being embarrassing for the city’s image, the SDP runs counter to Helsinki’s current master plan 2002, which contains a reservation for the tunnel, says Risto Rautava, the chairman of the conservative National Coalition Party group on the City Council.
      Rautava notes further that the aim of the reservation is to ensure that the tunnel will be built at some time in the future.
      However, the SDP is proposing that the entire tunnel project should be dropped. According to SDP council group chairman Kai Kalima, the tunnel will have to be removed from the next master plan.
     
A new master plan will be discussed next year at a new City Council, to be formed after the upcoming municipal elections.
      The National Coalition Party, the largest party on the council, was against the proposed abandonment of the tunnel project. Surprisingly, Maija Anttila (SDP), the chair of the City Plannning Committee, sided with them, saying that the tunnel reservation should remain in the land use plan.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Proposed Helsinki tunnel unlikely to be built (17.1.2008)
  If driving were banned in the centre of Helsinki (7.9.2005)

Helsingin Sanomat