Weaving Junatie

Stitching together a disconnected urban space in central Helsinki

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Junatie road is one of the most important traffic areas in Helsinki today, linking some of Finland's busiest urban districts. From the very beginning, Junatie’s main achievement has been uniting disconnected territories. The expansion of infrastructural links aimed at greater integration of Helsinki Metropolitan Area has, however had the opposite effect on the immediate context. Surrounding neighbourhoods gradually became disconnected, with focus shifting towards a car-centric environment establishing major barriers for pedestrians and compromising the quality of the public space.

Mandaworks together with WSP Finland propose to reverse this focus, and re-integrate detached contexts into a coherent urban landscape. By redesigning East-West traffic systems and restoring lost ties between North and South, we create a ‘weaving’ system of different links. The result is an interconnected, diverse and social ‘carpet’ referencing traditional Finnish tapestry technique: Junatien Ryijy.

The East-West connectivity is improved by redesigning the transit systems to contain a dedicated sustainable public transit corridor, the Baana cycle structure, pedestrian and slow traffic zones and designated car lanes. To reconnect the northern and southern green and urban structures, new strong connections are made at strategic spots - the Weave nodes, adding unique new meeting spaces within Junatie. A central sunken amphitheatre creates a playful and attractive new place at the center of the area. Through a conscious design attitude, a continuous weave pattern appears throughout the entire area, articulated by paving, program, lighting, street furniture, planting and storm water elements.