THE UNIQUE CROWN BRIDGES PROJECT BUILDS FINLAND’S LONGEST AND TALLEST BRIDGE IN HELSINKI

This multi-year project requires experience in demanding construction since, with a length of nearly 1,200 metres, the impressive Kruunuvuori Bridge will be Finland’s longest and, with its central pylon reaching a height of 135 metres, also Finland’s highest and longest-spanning bridge. On the main boat passage, the underpass height will be 20 metres, the free width of the bridge opening will be 30 metres and the minimum width of the passage will be 31 metres.

The Finke Bridge connecting the southern part of Kalasatama with Korkeasaari will be a continuous tensioned concrete beam bridge of approximately 293 metres in length and 18 metres in width with six intermediate supports. At Finke Bridge, the underpass height will be 6.9 metres, the free width of the bridge opening will be 20 metres and the minimum width of the passage will be 20 metres. The fact that Kruunuvuori Bridge and Finke Bridge are built solely for public transport, pedestrian traffic and cyclists makes them exceptional on a global scale.

The 200-year service life requirement set for the Kruunuvuori Bridge, as concerns the difficult to replace load-bearing structures such as pylons, interim supports and steel girders, is also exceptional. The 200-year service life further emphasises the quality of our construction, and we pay special attention to the selection of various working methods and materials, for example. The TYL Crown Bridges consortium formed by Kreate and YIT, joins together the best experts from both actors in a project where innovation and developing new ways of working are part of the culture of construction.

Kreate is also involved in the execution of the pre-construction work in Korkeasaari, also included in the all-in contract, which include the dredging of the shore areas and performing artificial filling with crushed rock. The artificially filled sea area between Korkeasaari and Palosaari will form Mieritzinranta.

In addition to high technical requirements, the Crown Bridges project is guided by environmental values, which have played a key role already in the planning stage. The completed environmental assessments will have a strong impact on the scheduling of the work, among other things. For example, dredging will be carried out in a manner where turbid water will not spread outside the site or disturb migratory fish during spawning or the nesting of birds.

The TYL Crown Bridges consortium started work at the southern tip of Kalasatama, in Kruunuvuorenranta with the construction of work bridges and with preparatory work in Kalasatama in October 2021. The construction of the pylon for the Kruunuvuori Bridge started on top of the foundation in autumn 2022, and the concreting of the pylon will continue until the end of 2023. The wire installations and structural finishing of the bridge will take place during summer and autumn 2024. The surface structures of the bridge will be finalised during 2025. The target for starting tram traffic has been set to 2027.

The total value of the project is approximately EUR 126 million, of which Kreate’s share is approximately EUR 63 million.