Construction of planned Pisara rail line would cause major disruptions in centre of Helsinki

Officials to present information on subterranean rail line to city residents on Wednesday

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The Helsinki City Planning Department and the Finnish Transport Agency are to present proposals for the construction of the tunnels for the planned Pisara rail line on Wednesday.
      The line is to make a loop from Pasila station through the centre of Helsinki and back to Pasila. Wednesday’s event will be the start of a city planning process that is expected to take about two years.
      The project has raised powerful emotions, because the excavation of the tunnels threatens to cause upheavals in the Alppipuisto Park.
     
The teardrop-shaped subterranean route for local trains would branch off from the main line just south of Pasila Station, from where it would loop around the centre, stopping at three stations – Hakaniemi, City Centre, and Töölö – before returning to Pasila.
      The costs will mostly be met by the state, but the City of Helsinki can influence the planning of the line in the City Plan. Pisara is expected to be ready in 2020.
      Assuming that Parliament grants more than EUR 700 million in funding, a massive subterranean construction project will start in Helsinki. An average 500 cubic metres of rock and earth would be excavated and taken away each day as the tunnel is built.
     
Five access tunnels are to be dug in the centre of Helsinki. When it is complete, the only visible signs of the line on the surface will be emergency exits and ventilation equipment.
      The biggest changes on the surface will be in the Eläintarha area, where the trains will plunge into the tunnels. In Eläintarha, the track would cut a wedge-shaped slice of Alppipuisto park of 20 metres at its widest point.
     
Details of the project are to be shown to the public at the auditorium of the Helsinki City Planning Department at Kansakoulunkatu 3 on Wednesday, August 29^th from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM. Planners will be on the spot an hour before the event starts.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Greens demand that Pisararata be included in next government programme (13.1.2011)
  Transport Minister not promising more state funding for rail transport (5.8.2010)

Helsingin Sanomat