Reader’s opinion|I promise to be among the first to step on the bridge when Munkkiniemi Baana opens.
When after graduating from theater school in 1979, I said that I would ride all possible distances by bike, an older colleague told me to stop that sport immediately, so that I would not Paavo Piironenwho got hit by a bus on the Pitkälläsilla bridge and died on the way to the show at the National Theater.
At that time, I lived on Vaasankatu, and the trip to the Kruununhakaa theater was a daily test of courage. On Hämeenkatu, there was no other option but to try to drive ahead of the rumbling bus so hard that it wouldn’t catch up. If the bus got alongside, there was minimal space to pedal.
Since those days, the cyclist’s Helsinki has completely changed. You can only go in each direction along the lanes reserved for us cyclists, and in new residential areas bike lanes are a matter of course. But there is still a long way to go, for example to Copenhagen, the Mecca of those who travel by bike. There, if necessary, the bike paths are raised above the street level into beautifully curved bridges, the views and safety of which attract even those whose physiques do not need tough uphills to pedal.
Instead, there seem to be those in Helsinki who want the city to forever look the same as it did in the fifties. But should the city’s cycling-encouraging attitude submit to those who come to admire, for example, the much-talked-about Humallahde rock once a couple of years, or listen to those who, on their work trips, would use the bridge designed over the sea ten times a week? Or those who want to feel the closeness of the rock and the sea in a new way from a new place?
And as for taming the bike, which Silja Rantanen suggested (HS Opinion 4.9.): when you don’t jump off the ride of any other vehicle to walk sometimes, why should a cyclist?
Based on the visual image, it seems that the planned bridge will, in addition to its functionality, become a beautiful and functional landmark that meets the needs of the people of Helsinki, something that emphasizes the maritime nature of the area, the interaction between residents and nature.
I trust the city’s plans. I promise to be among the first to step on the bridge when Munkkiniemi Baana opens!
Kari Heiskanen
Helsinki
The reader’s opinions are speeches written by HS readers, which are selected and delivered by the HS editors. You can leave an opinion piece or familiarize yourself with the principles of the pieces at www.hs.fi/kiryotamielipidekeisuis/.
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