Blog 1: Review of Ring I bus routes begins

We have commenced the development of public transport on Ring I to the 2024 situation when light rail line 550 and a new bus route 523 running between Tapiola and Leppävaara have started.

The development of public transport is strongly linked to the needs and views of its users and those interested in it, which is why we will interact with residents and other stakeholders in various ways throughout the planning process.

 

Key objectives of the route network review

  • We want to understand the public transport needs of people who live in the vicinity of Ring I and those who travel via the road.
  • We want to plan public transport links that meet the needs of as many people as possible.
  • We want to develop economically viable public transport service on Ring I.
The map shows bus routes that serve Ring I and light rail line 550 approximately in 2024. Ring I is served by routes 54, 553, 553K, 561 and 562. New bus route 523 will run from Westendinasema via Tapiola and Ring I to Leppävaara along Westendinkatu - Etelätuulentie - Merituulentie - Tapiolantie - Ring I. The route of light rail line 550 will differ from the route of the current trunk bus 550 between Pitäjänmäki and Leppävaara: the light rail line will run to the south of the railway line. In Leppävaara, the light rail line will run via Etelä-Leppävaara. From Otaniemi it will continue to Keilaniemi instead of Tapiola.
Bus routes serving Ring I and light rail line 550 in 2024.

Bus routes included in the review

The review includes bus routes 54, 553, 553K and 523. Bus 523 will start running between Tapiola and Leppävaara when the light rail line 550 starts.

The planning will commence on 24 October 2022 with a travel survey and a review of background information such as the number residents and jobs.

In the initial planning phase, we aim to improve our understanding of the travel habits and needs of people who live in the vicinity of or travel along Ring I, as well as of how effective the current public transport services are.

How can you participate in the planning?

In the early stages of planning, the best way to voice your opinion is to complete our upcoming travel survey.

The more responses we receive from people travelling on and in the vicinity of Ring I, the better we can understand people’s travel needs and plan bus services in the area in the best possible way.

The results of the survey will likely raise many questions which we will go through together with you in workshops and via surveys.

In addition, we will keep you up-to-date with the progress of the planning via the blog (in Finnish) and other channels.

You can give feedback via our feedback system and customer service.

We will tell more about how to participate as the planning progresses. Stay tuned!

Previous route network plans

The new bus route 523 will start running from Leppävaara via Ring I to Tapiola when light rail line 550 starts. The establishment of the route was decided in winter 2022, in conjunction with the route network plan for Tapiola and Leppävaara.

In this review, we are not proposing changes to the route between Leppävaara and Tapiola, but we will consider extending the route eastward from Leppävaara based on customer insight. For more information about the route network plan for Tapiola and Leppävaara, see here.