Changing Harbours

Harbours are an inseparable part of Helsinki; the city was born as a port, and foreign trade soon became one of its most important sources of income. During the 1960s Helsinki city planning authorities decided to replace Helsinki’s existing goods harbours with completely new port facilities at Vuosaari, an area on the eastern edge of the city that had just been incorporated as a city district. Plans for a new harbour were drawn up and after many years of preparation, the construction of the new port began in 2002; it will be taken into use in 2008.
The port’s new location will expedite sea traffic and reduce the load of cargo-oriented road traffic passing through the city centre. The socio-economically feasible project will free up some of Helsinki’s best waterfront areas for the city’s growth. A new railway line extending to the port facilities at Vuosaari, as well as a new connection to the ring road encircling Helsinki, will facilitate smoother flows of goods traffic to the rest of the country. The Metro line and east-west motorway already built provide smooth connections to the city centre for passenger traffic.
Helsinki is preparing its centre for the most dramatic changes taking place there in over one hundred years. With the building of a new goods harbour at the city’s eastern edge, the Jätkäsaari and Itäranta areas formerly occupied by port functions, will be freed for residential and business use. At the same time space for centrally located seaside recreational areas will also be created.

After the goods harbour has been relocated at Vuosaari two years from now, the large-scale construction beginning at Jätkäsaari and Itäranta will alter the character of the entire city. Overall, the number of apartments being constructed in areas freed up from harbour functions during the 1990s and 2000s would be able to house approximately 10% of Helsinki’s current resident population. Jätkäsaari and Itäranta, their buildings matching the density and height of the central business district, will become direct extensions of the city centre.
Besides easing the City’s housing needs, the new areas will provide an opportunity to enhance Helsinki’s maritime character. Encircling the peninsula defining the city centre, a virtually uninterrupted waterfront promenade will be created for pedestrians, who will encounter changing views to the sea and city, parks with a variety of themes, as well as a chain of seaside cafeterias and restaurants. At the same time, portions of the inner city’s existing residential areas will obtain access to waterfront areas that has long been lacking. The area being built at Kruunuvuori to replace the existing oil harbour will eventually function as a new nature-oriented recreational area featuring a wide range of leisure time services for all city residents.

Further information is available on the following websites:

Port of Helsinki
http://www.portofhelsinki.fi/english

City of Helsinki
http://www.hel2.fi

City Planning Department - City planning projects
http://www.hel.fi/wps/portal/Kaupunkisuunnitteluvirasto_en