Summer brings the rails to Lentävänniemi – construction of the tramway continues as planned
The construction of the western part of the Tampere tramway is progressing on schedule. By the end of the summer, the first rails will be installed in Lentävänniemi, and this year, almost three kilometres of double rails will be built. The tramway works are in progress in the entire western part i.e. Santalahti, Hiedanranta, Niemenranta and Lentävänniemi. On the Pyynikintori–Santalahti section, the installation of the double track is planned to be completed by the end of the year. In early August, the works on the Sepänkatu bridge will also be completed, and the street can be reopened for traffic.
– Construction work on the whole section of Pyynikintori–Lentävänniemi has progressed well, and in part in the Santalahti area even ahead of schedule. Towards the end of the summer we will start the overhead contact line installation between Pyynikintori and Santalahti. All the work aims to ensure that tram traffic to Santalahti can start next year, i.e. on 7 August 2023, says Sari Valjus, Project Manager of the Tramway Alliance.
The City of Tampere will continue to fill Näsisaari, which is due to be completed by the end of this year.
- The aim is to enable the Tramway Alliance to start working in Näsisaari in the summer of 2023. The schedule is affected by the slump retention of Näsisaari filling. If the works can be started as planned, it will be possible to start tram traffic to Lentävänniemi at the beginning of 2025, Valjus estimates.
Track work busiest in the summer
This year, the Tramway Alliance will build a double track of the tramway in all construction sectors, i.e. Santalahti, Hiedanranta and Lentävänniemi. To date, about 700 metres of double track have been laid on the Pyynikintori-Santalahti section.
- The railway work between Pyynikintori and Santalahti is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year. The first tracks of the Lentävänniemi will be installed on Federleynkatu in May. The aim is to complete Federleynkatu, Kehyskatu and about half of Lielahdenkatu in terms of the superstructure this year. The rest of Lielahdenkatu and Halkoniemenkatu are scheduled for next year, says Timo Kuusela, the superstructure manager of the Tramway Alliance.
The western part of the Tampere tramway will also have a ballast track and a slab track with grass, stone or asphalt as a coating.
- This year, approximately two kilometres of slab track and an estimated less than a kilometre of ballast track will be installed. The tramway can be considered completed once all technical systems have been installed. Technical systems include electrical track structures such as poles, overhead contact line hangers and overhead contact lines themselves. In addition, rail switch turning devices and traffic lights for the tramway are installed, among other things, says Kuusela.
In total, the western part of the Tampere tramway, i.e. between Pyynikintori and Lentävänniemi, will have a tramway distance of approximately 6.7 kilometres.
Construction of the Rosenlew tramway bridge over Paasikiventie proceeds – Paasikiventie will be expanded
In the western part of Santalahti, the construction of the Rosenlew underpass over Paasikiventie continues. The majority of the piling of the bridge foundations has been completed during the spring, but later in the summer the support between the Paasikiventie lanes will still be piled.
The Rosenlew bridge will be more than 230 metres long and dedicated to tram traffic. The bridge will cross Paasikiventie from the western end of Rantatie and reaching the Pölkkylänpuisto, from where the tramway route will continue towards Hiedanranta and Niemenranta via Näsisaari. The bridge is supported by five pillars in addition to abutments. The construction of the bridge can be followed from the live camera on the Tramway Alliance website.
In addition to bridge work, Paasikiventie’s renovation work will continue in the area. Paasikiventie road will be moved and also widened to the west to three lanes, because without the transfer, the tramway would not fit in the Rantatie area. In addition, the Tramway Alliance will carry out the Paasikiventie widening work in connection with the tramway work up to the west side of the Tampere log floating tunnel, where they will be combined with the earlier widening. Paasikivi has occasional lane arrangements during the work. These works will begin in May and will be completed by the end of summer next year.
Work is progressing towards completion in Santalahti – Sepänkatu opens to traffic in July–August
The tramway construction of the section between Pyynikintori and Santalahti began in November 2020. Construction of the section proceeds as planned and even ahead of schedule for some work phases, such as the Sepänkatu rail installation.
Work by streets:
Street construction work and paving work have been completed on the tramway section of Pirkankatu. The pedestrian and bicycle lane on the south side of the street will be asphalted at the beginning of June. In addition, traffic lights will be installed at the Sepänkatu and Pirkankatu junction during the summer.
In the spring, the first new street trees have been planted on Sepänkatu, and during the summer, street construction work, curbs and stone paving and traffic lights are installed. In addition, rail installations and the construction of a slab track will be continued. In the Satakunnankatu junction area, median strips are built and stone paving is done. Concrete stones and tram stop foundations are installed at the Särkänniemi tram stop. Rail installation and surface works are underway on Sepänkatu bridge, and casting work on the slab track will be carried out in early summer. At the junction of Sepänkatu and Paasikivenkatu, the work area changes in June. A few lane arrangements will be made for car traffic on Paasikivenkatu, when pavements are made on the central part of Paasikivenkatu. All the work on Sepänkatu is progressing in such a way that Sepänkatu is to be opened again for traffic in July–August. Before opening traffic on Sepänkatu, asphalt pavement and road markings are made. After the opening, street construction will continue on the eastern side of the street for the rest of the year. Sepänkatu has been closed to traffic since May last year. The opening of the street will be announced in more detail separately during the summer.
On Paasikivenkatu, the construction of structural layers, cable routing and storm water lines will continue until the end of May. Construction of the tramway’s ballast track on Paasikivenkatu starts in June, and the section will be completed at the end of summer. During the summer, curbs are made along the side of the road and roadways are asphalted in stages. On the south side of the street, a pedestrian and cycle path has been replaced in Tiporaitti, and a new section will be available in early summer. At the same time, the temporary pedestrian crossing over Paasikivenkatu at the Haarla curve will also be discontinued and the route will move to the final route via Haarlankatu and Rantatie. To the south of Paasikivenkatu, a pedestrian and bicycle path towards the Sepänkatu bridge is being built, and trees and other landscapes are being planted in the area in the early autumn. During the summer, the facade will be finished on the tramway’s electricity supply station along Paasikivenkatu. The station’s hardware installations will start at the end of the autumn.
Street construction work on Rantatie proceeds in accordance with the building construction sites in the area. Car and bike traffic on Rantatie already run at its final place on the road. The groundwork for Rantatie track has been completed and railway work will be done on the street throughout the summer. There will be both a ballast track and a grass track on Rantatie. On the tram stops on Rantatie, i.e. the Tikkutehdas and Santalahti stops, curb and asphalting work will be done. A lift is being built at the end of the Santalahti beach bridge facing Pispalanharju. The aim is to have the lift available during June.
In addition to track and street construction work, the Santalahti area will have a lot of installations of various technical systems during the summer, such as fibre cabling, as well as the installation of electrical and telecommunication centres and traffic lights at stops. Overhead contact line installations in the area will start in early August.
In Hiedanranta, the loading berm is continued and the district heating line is moved
In Hiedanranta, tramway work began at the end of April. At the same time, the first traffic arrangements have been made for the area when the construction site road for the construction of the tramway and the pedestrian and cycle path crossing the Paasikiventie cross in the Hiedanranta area. The junction is marked with traffic signs so that construction site traffic has the duty to give way.
During the summer, Sellupuisto’s loading berm will be extended in the south direction on Tehdaskartanonkatu. For this reason, a detour will be built on Tehdaskartanonkatu during the construction, along which there will be a two-way road and a combined pedestrian and cycle path. At the same time, the existing district heating line is removed from underneath the loading berm. The car traffic part of the detour is available at the beginning of June. After that, the transmission of district heat is carried out, after which the pedestrian and cyclist part of the detour will be built. It will be available during June. The detour arrangements are valid until the summer of 2023, which is just over a year.
During the summer, a railway base will also be built in Hiedanranta between Nottbeckinaukio and the factory area. In addition, new municipal engineering will be developed for Hiedanranta’s future residential areas. The aim is also to install the first rails in Hiedanranta this year.
The loading berm built in Sellupuisto last summer compresses the soil for the upcoming track and stop until autumn. Due to the loading berm, the traffic arrangements made in Sellupuisto area last summer are valid until further notice.
Work in progress on all tramway streets in Niemenranta and Lentävänniemi
During the spring, all Niemenranta and Lentävänniemi tramway streets, i.e. Federleynkatu, Kehyskatu, Lielahdenkatu and Halkoniemenkatu, have undergone cable and pipeline transfers and the construction of cross-street pipelines under the street. Cables and pipelines that go along the street have been moved out of the way of the upcoming track, so that their maintenance work can be carried out in the future without interrupting the tram traffic. Cabling and plumbing have also been replaced.
After the cable and pipeline transfers, the groundwork of the track will be done on the streets and during the summer, tramways will be built in several places.
Work by streets:
The cross-street water pipeline installation work on Federleynkatu is in the final phase and the construction of the track base continues at different points on the street. Installation of the first rails will begin in late May. New lighting is also being built on the north side of Federleynkatu, and the foundations for the light poles are being laid. A load-bearing growing medium is being built for the new street trees. Due to the works, Federleynkatu is a one-way street between Kehyskatu and Matilda Niemi. One-way maintenance traffic and property plot traffic are allowed in the area. The cycle path and the recommended pedestrian route are located mainly on the north side of Federleynkatu. On the section between Matilda Niemi and Sellupuisto, Federleynkatu is completely closed to car traffic. The parking on Federleynkatu has also been restricted, and after the tramway has been completed, Federleynkatu will no longer have street parking on the tramway section between the Sellupuisto and Kehyskatu.
Cable and pipeline transfers have proceeded according to plan on Kehyskatu, and rail installations of the street will start in June at the Lielahdenkatu junction, which has been converted into a T-crossing during the work. During the summer, a railway foundation will be built and rails will be installed along entire Kehyskatu. In the summer, car traffic is moved to the eastern side of the street on top of the pedestrian and bike lane, and the construction area changes to the middle section of the street. There will be changes affecting pedestrians and cyclists. Changes are controlled on the site. During the construction, the car traffic on Kehyskatu is two-way. Parking spaces on Kehyskatu will be removed in mid-May in accordance with the street plan of the tramway.
A large sewage line and cross-street water pipeline under the street are still being built on Lielahdenkatu in the early summer. At the end of May, some traffic arrangements will be made for these works. On the south side of the street, curb are laid and asphalting is done so that the completed street sections can be used in stages. In mid-summer, the construction area north of Lielahdenkatu will be extended to the pedestrian and cycle path area, which will result in some traffic arrangements being made for the area. Railway base will also be built on Lielahdenkatu during the summer and rails will be installed on the section between the Kehyskatu junction and Lentävänniemenkatu. In Lielahdenkatu, two-way car traffic is maintained during the work, but lanes and centrelines are changed as the work progresses. During the construction, the pedestrian and cycling route will mostly be located north of Lielahdenkatu, but temporary changes are expected as the work progresses. Parking spaces on the tram section of Lielahdenkatu will be removed during the early summer.
On Halkoniemenkatu, preparations have been made for future traffic arrangements on the western edge of the street in the area between the shopping centre and the roadway. As the work progresses, the roadway moves to the western edge of the street when the drainage work starts in the street area. The pedestrian path also moves to the western edge. According to the street plan, parking spaces on Halkoniemenkatu will be removed during May. Excavation will be carried out on Halkoniemenkatu during May in the area of the upcoming tram stop. The excavation is announced by an acoustic signal and, if necessary, the passage near the construction site area and Pyhällönpuisto is temporarily stopped during the blasts.
In Pyhällönpuisto, a loading berm that improves the load-bearing capacity of the ground will be completed during May. Due to the loading berm work, the passageways in the area have been altered. On the west side of the construction area, the route goes around the play area located in the area, which is in use during the work. The route leading to the east side of the future track has been cut off during the construction of the loading berm, but once the berm has been completed, the route will be available again in the early summer. The passageways will be guided on the site. The loading berm is in place for about a year, after which the superstructure work, i.e. the installation of the rails, is started in the area.
During the tramway works, traffic arrangements are in place on the streets, but access to the properties and maintenance runs are ensured at all stages. Night work is also carried out as necessary for safety reasons and in order to minimise disruption to traffic. Parking changes in Niemenranta and Lentävänniemi have been announced by the City of Tampere >>
The Tramway Alliance will provide information about the construction of the western part of the tramway and its impact on the Tramway Alliance website and social media channels.
The City of Tampere is responsible for the construction of Näsisaari and providing related information.
Further information on tram and bus traffic and the special routes during construction is provided by Tampere regional transport, Nysse.
More information about the Tampere Tram is provided by Tampereen Ratikka.