The stone and asphalt works will mainly be carried out over June and July. The works will not cause any significant traffic disruptions, but traffic may be temporarily diverted to another lane or the other side of the street.
The contractor is GRK Suomi Oy.
Changes to parking spaces and the speed limit
Some parking spaces will be removed due to the changes to the crossings, but spaces will be added where crossings are removed. Overall, the number of on-street parking spaces will be reduced by four.
The number of crossings along Eläintarhantie will be reduced from nine to seven. The crossings to be removed are located north of the Linnunlaulu bridge and by the City Theatre parking area. The crossings are not essential to pedestrian or cycling routes, and their removal will not increase travel distances.
Additionally, the speed limit at the eastern end of the street will be lowered to 30 km/h by Ympyrätalo.
Helsinki wants to get rid of all dangerous crossings
The City of Helsinki has charted crossings classified as dangerous in the city’s street network. There are currently several dozen such crossings in the inner city. The aim is to get rid of all dangerous crossings, such as non-light-controlled crossings across several unidirectional lanes, in the next few years.
Examples of safety improvements on the dangerous crossings include speed bumps, narrowing and traffic lights, as well as converting the crossings into crossing points or removing the crossing altogether. The measures will be influenced by street crossing needs, the distance to other crossings and the characteristics of the street, among other factors.
Other areas to be improved in the next few years in the inner city include Kanavakatu in Katajanokka, Nordenskiöldinkatu in Taka-Töölö, and Hämeentie and Kumpulantie in Vallila. Furthermore, a significant number of crossings classified as dangerous will be improved as part of the Mäkelänkatu renovation and the Länsiraitiotiet (‘Western Tramways’) project.
The project to improve the safety of crossings is based on the Helsinki Traffic Safety Development Programme 2022–2026 approved by the City Council.
