HS Helsinki | Work sites are being avoided on Helsinki’s busiest bike lane again, even though the extensive bridge renovation was only completed a couple of years ago

Helsinki Road work is underway in Lauttasaari, which aims to make cycling and walking on Lauttasaarentie smoother.

One-way bike lanes will be built between the Lauttasaari bridge and Meripuistotie. In addition, there will be new stairs for pedestrians on the northern edge of the bridge near the underpass and outdoor walkway.

The renovation will also improve, for example, the lighting of the area and renew the bus stops, as well as build around ten new parking spaces along the street.

Jobs will probably be completed in May of next year, says the project manager of the City of Helsinki Mertsi Mäkinen.

In the future, from the Pohjoikaari intersection, after the traffic lights, only one lane will continue towards the east of the Lauttasaari bridge. Currently, there are two lanes after the traffic lights, one of which ends before the bridge. Traffic lights and dedicated lanes are kept for turning cars at the junctions of Meripuistotie and Pohjoikaare.

In connection with the renovation, ten old deciduous trees will have to be removed from Lauttasaarientie, but 25 new trees will be planted later.

Makisen according to the road work will cause inconvenience to traffic and may also cause some noise. The traffic arrangements change according to the work phases. However, it is possible to pass through the area throughout the duration of the contract.

At the same time, a house construction site is underway in the area at Lauttasaarentie 8.

“Two renovations in the same area certainly brings difficulty and causes congestion. The street is used less in the width direction,” says Mäkinen.

Lauttasaari the extensive work on the bridge was completed in December 2020. The Lauttasaari Bridge, which connects to Lauttasaaritie, is the busiest bike lane in Helsinki. Last year, the bridge was crossed by bike 970,000 times.

The bike lanes that will be completed next year are a continuation of the one-way lanes that have already been completed on Lauttasaarentie up to Ruukkinlahdentie. In the future, there will be even more renovations in Lauttasaari: bicycle lanes will also be improved at the western end of Lauttasaarenti between Ruukinlahdentie and Isokaari.