Erkkilänkatu roadworks start as Erkkilä Bridge progresses

The Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency (Väylävirasto) announced that work on the Erkkilä Bridge is proceeding on schedule during winter and that, in spring, the entire Erkkilänkatu street crossing over the railway will be renewed as part of the Tampere rail yard project.

Väylävirasto says that during the past few weeks, the bridge has received safety railing frameworks and cable routes for lighting. The agency adds that railing and lighting are expected to be completed during May, while the street renewal will be carried out in connection with the bridge works, subject to spring weather conditions. The project manager Jetro Matilainen called for an early and warm spring to keep the construction timeline on track.

The announcement details major improvements for traffic flows along Erkkilänkatu between Rautatienkatu and Peltokatu. The street will get separate lanes for motor vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists, and cyclists will finally have their own dedicated lane. In spring, the street’s structural layers will be renewed and lighting will be improved, with paving, surfacing and lane markings planned later. The agency also says the historic rotvalli that had been stored will be installed back in its original place, while municipal utilities on both sides of the bridge were replaced last autumn.

Some of Juhannuskylä School’s yard has already served as the construction area, and a natural-stone retaining wall built as part of the bridge is now complete. Next, the project will include a bicycle shelter and new plantings, and the older speed-calming raised cushions in front of the school will be replaced with new ones. Kreate Oy’s site manager Mika Huhtala says the school yard will be restored and play equipment that was kept in storage will be brought back so the yard can be used by students again when schools start in the autumn.

Väylävirasto also warns that in May there will be some noise when a steel work scaffold under the bridge is dismantled. The scaffold was erected last year during a railway service interruption to ensure safety for demolition and new construction, and its removal will be carried out during two full 40-hour total railway shutdowns starting on Saturday 2 May and 9 May at 6:40 and ending on Sunday 3 May and 10 May at 22:40. Noise may also be heard at night in the surrounding area, while no other particularly disruptive night work is expected as part of the bridge construction.