Tampere City Council decides on launch of Pirkkala-Linnainmaa tramway implementation planning

The aim is for it to be possible for the council to make a decision on the construction on the basis of planning readiness in October 2024.

A decision by the council to move forward in the construction of the project will require a government grant for the project. The objective of negotiations will be for the state to be involved in the planning and actual construction of the project.

In a resolution the council has added unanimously, it requires that design solutions be sought for the implementation of the Hatanpää highway, which will preserve the role of the Hatanpää highway as a regional assembly street and route to the city centre. The Hatanpää and Härmälä area will be designed in a way that secures preconditions for car use.

When the Linnainmaa public transport terminal is implemented, solutions will be examined during the implementation planning phase to ensure the smooth running of car traffic on Mäentakusenkatu as well as the effective functioning of the public transport terminal. Tampereen Raitiotie Oy will be authorised to implement the tramway project in accordance with the project plan.

The cost estimate for the implementation plan of the tramway from Pirkkala's Suuppa to Linnainmaa is EUR 13.5 million, of which Pirkkala will cover approximately EUR 5 million. The cost estimate includes the alliance’s tendering costs,  the alliance’s development phase costs paid to service providers, and purchases by the client for the alliance’s development phase. The aim is to obtain 30% state aid for implementation planning.

If a decision is made to begin construction in both the Tampere and Pirkkala City Councils in October 2024, construction could start in early 2025. It is estimated that construction would last from 2025 to 2028, which would mean that traffic could start on new sections in January 2029.

Technical plan as a basis for further work

The approved Pirkkala-Linnainmaa tramway  project plan is a technical plan that includes a comprehensive impact assessment and project evaluation with cost-benefit calculations. The project plan estimates that in 2050, there will be a total of 55,000 inhabitants and 23,200 jobs in the 800-metre access area to tram stops along the new tramways between Suuppa bus station and Kauppi campus-Linnainmaa

The project plan included two options for building Pirkkala's share. In Option 1, the tramway would be built all the way to Pirkkala's Suuppa Municipal Centre at one time. In Option 2, the tramway would be built first to Partola and would later be continued to Suuppa.

The project plan’s southern tramway branch continues from the stop at Sori square via the Hatanpää highway to Rantaperkiö and along Nuolialantie road through Härmälä to Pirkkala’s Partola regional centre. From Partola, the tramway runs along Naistenmatkantie to Suuppa Municipal Centre in Pirkkala. The length of the southern branch of the tramway is 9.3 km, of which 4.7 km is located in City of Tampere and 4.6 km in the municipality of Pirkkala. The tramway branch has 11 tram stop pairs, six of which are located in Tampere and five of which are in Pirkkala.

The project plan’s eastern branch of the tramway runs from the stop of the current Kauppi campus stop for tram line 1 along Tenniskatu to the west side of Lake Alasjärvi, crosses Teiskontie, main road 12 at Lake Alasjärvi, and continues along Heikkilänkatu across Highway 9 to the Linnainmaa end stop in Koilliskeskus on Mäentakusenkatu. The length of the eastern tramway branch is 4.3 km and it includes four pairs of tram stops. A future reservation has been planned for a tram depot in the area north of Heikkilänkatu for the eastern railway branch. The project plan includes the extension of the Hervanta tram depot.

The project plan has been prepared in as much detail as preliminary drafts of street plans allow. The planning has been carried out in interaction with municipal residents and stakeholders.

Further information in finnish:

Agendas and minutes

Council meeting 24 April 2023 

https://www.tampereenratikka.fi/suunnittelu/pirkkala-linnainmaa/

Pirkkala-Linnainmaa tramway project planning 

Pirkkala City Council decides on launch of Pirkkala-Linnainmaa tramway implementation planning

Pirkkala City Council press release 24 April 2023