Renovation of Mäkelänkatu

Beneath the street surface, water and sewer pipelines, district heating pipes, electricity and telecommunications cables and street structure layers will be overhauled. Stormwater and wastewater drains will be separated, which will help with preparing for potential floods.

Above ground, street surface structures and technical systems, such as traffic lights, lighting and tramway technology, will be overhauled. Tram rails will be overhauled at the Sturenkatu intersection and on the southern side of Sturenkatu. 

Cyclists will be separated from other traffic onto designated lanes with the construction of one-way cycling routes south from Kumpulantie. The cycling connections of the nearby streets will also be improved to ensure that cycling arrangements will continue with a high level of quality from Mäkelänkatu onwards. 

Cycling routes will also be improved in connection with the renovation of Mäkelänkatu on: 

• Lautatarhankatu (Hämeentie – Junatie)
• Hämeentie (Junatie – Allotriankuja)
• Vääksyntie
• Elimäenkatu (Kuortaneenkatu – Mäkelänkatu)
• Sturenkatu (Mäkelänkatu – Hämeentie)

Street crossing arrangements will be overhauled as well. Traffic lights will be added to all crossings along Mäkelänkatu.

The number of motor vehicle lanes will be reduced from three to two. One of the lanes will serve primarily as a bus lane.

Turning left will be prohibited at the Mäkelänkatu and Sturenkatu intersection when driving south, which will improve the smoothness of traffic.

All tramway crossings will feature traffic lights to improve traffic safety and make tram traffic more efficient.

The Rautalammintie pair of stops will be removed to expedite tram traffic. Removing the stops will make walks to the stops slightly longer, but walks to other stops will remain reasonable.

The other tram stops will be overhauled. The tram stops located on the southern side of the Mäkelänrinne, Hattulantie and Vallilantie intersections will be dimensioned for the upcoming light rail trams.

Bus stops will be relocated and combined. Combining stops will improve the efficiency of bus traffic and the clarity of the stop arrangements for passengers, as going forward, all bus lines will stop at the same stops. The stops will be canopied.

he valuable lime tree avenue of Mäkelänkatu will be overhauled in sections with trees in poor condition. The old trees will be removed, the substrate will be replaced and new saplings will be planted to replace the old trees. Slightly over one hundred trees will be removed in total. 

The sections in poor condition are located near the tram stops and in the area between Sturenkatu and Nokiankuja.

The most significant reason for the poor condition of the trees is a decline in the quality of the substrate caused by street salting, particularly compression of the substrate. The sections in poor condition will be overhauled as wholes to facilitate replacing their substrate entirely. This will secure the growth and wellbeing of the new saplings. The periodic overhaul process will ensure that the composition of the avenue remains as unified as possible.  

The sections of the avenue to be preserved will undergo a light substrate overhaul. Tree maintenance and the monitoring of the condition of the trees will continue.  

The condition of the trees and the substrate has been established with thorough examinations. The trees have been examined individually with a decay probe and ultrasound to establish their vitality and decay status. A decline in the condition of the trees can also be observed visually as an increase in dead branches and tops and a decrease in the amount of leaves in the crown. The condition of the substrate has been examined by testing soil samples.

Elimäenkatu (Mäkelänkatu-Lemuntie)

• Water supply and other underground services will be renovated between Mäkelänkatu and Lemuntie.
• Cycling lanes will be built at the northern end of Elimäenkatu. New on-street parking spaces and a new loading site will also be added along the street.
• Timeframe December 2025 – summer 2026 (estimate)

Sturenkatu

• Municipal infrastructure, other underground utilities and tram tracks will be overhauled at the junction of Mäkelänkatu and Sturenkatu.
• Asphalting and paving changes will be carried out at the junction of Sammatintie and Inarintie.  Pedestrian crossings with low safety ratings at Inarintie and Sammatintie will be removed.
• Timeframe summer 2026 (estimate)

Vääksyntie

• Overhauls of municipal infrastructure and other underground infrastructure.
• Cycling lanes will be built on Vääksyntie.
• Timeframe December 2025 – summer 2026 (estimate)

Junction of Hämeentie-Lautatarhankatu-Junatie

• Overhauls of municipal infrastructure and other underground infrastructure.
• A one-way cycling path will be built on the south side of Lautatarhankatu and the existing cycling lane on the north side of the driving lane will be converted into a one-way cycling lane.
• One-way cycling paths will be built on Hämeentie between Junatie and Allotriankuja.
• Timeframe late 2026 – summer 2027 (estimate)

Junction of Päijänteentie-Hämeentie-Ristikkokatu

• Minor utility works and paving changes.
• The safety of the pedestrian crossing over Hämeentie will be improved, for example by removing one driving lane in each direction and adding a new central reservation.
• Narrower sections will be built on Ristikkokatu and at the junction of Ristikkokatu and Eläintarhantie to improve traffic safety.
• Pedestrian and cycling paths will be continued across Ristikkokatu and Päijänteentie, parallel with Hämeentie.
• Timeframe summer 2026 (estimate)

Side streets that intersect with Mäkelänkatu

• The renovation of the Mäkelänkatu municipal infrastructure extends for a few dozen metres also to the other side streets intersecting Mäkelänkatu.
• The timing for each street section depends on the progress of the Mäkelänkatu excavation.