A nearly 20-kilometre segment of a new tunnel for the western branch of the Metro was completed, as was a new 10-kilometre stretch of four-lane motorway linking Espoo and Kirkkonummi.
Drillers working in two directions to create the new underground tunnel have broken through the last bit of bedrock separating their digging sites under an island in western Helsinki. The achievement was celebrated with an underground ceremony on Thursday.
The Länsimetro (West Metro) expansion project is on schedule, with more than 70 percent of its tunnels complete. Actual construction of the new rail line is to begin before year's end.
“This is Finland’s biggest quarrying site, bigger than any mine. We’re removing 3.2 million cubic metres of rock,” said Länsimetro Managing Director Matti Kokkinen.
First train to roll in 3 years
The new route begins at the existing Ruoholahti station in westernmost Helsinki proper, snaking over the islands of Lauttasaari and Koivusaari, reaching Espoo at Keilaniemi, best known for the headquarters of companies such as Nokia, Fortum and Rovio.
From there it will swing up to Otaniemi, site of Aalto University, and the ’garden city’ of Tapiola before dipping south-west toward the residential area of Matinkylä.
It is expected to carry more than 100,000 passengers daily once operations begin in late2015.
The Helsinki Metro, which celebrated its 30th anniversary in August, now has 17 stations.
Meanwhile the fate of future capital-region transport projects remains unclear amid wrangling and discrepancies over budgets, which were debated in Parliament on Thursday.
