Plan summary Espoo Master Plan 2060

The main purpose of the master plan is to prepare for the growth of the city and make it a sustainable part of the urban structure. In line with the master plan, growth will be concentrated along the current and new public transport connections, mainly by densifying and enhancing the structure. The master plan will also help preserve the important ecological network and create good conditions for developing local recreational opportunities as part of further planning.

With the help of the master plan, the city will prepare for new rail transport connections between the city’s urban centres. The new connections (Kauklahti-Kivenlahti, Matinkylä-Espoon keskus-Jorvi, Matinkylä-Leppävaara, Tapiola-Suurpelto and Leppävaara-Viiskorpi) will boost the vitality of the urban centres and improve the accessibility of the entire city. Northern Espoo will develop thanks to the Espoo-Salo railway line and the trunk lines running south and east from Kalajärvi.

The master plan will also steer the development of the urban centres in functional and qualitative terms. Commercial activities, services and jobs will be heavily concentrated in the centres, and further planning will need to pay particular attention to the quality of the urban environment and the number of urban green areas.

The master plan will outline the main cycling network between the city’s urban centres. The possibility to build a new commuter train depot will be examined on both sides of the Kauklahti centre.

The densest construction will take place along new rail transport corridors. Between these corridors, areas dominated by detached houses will be developed while maintaining their unique characteristics. Growth will mainly be concentrated in areas that already have a detailed plan. The largest areas reserved for residential construction are located in Myntinmäki along the new Espoo-Salo railway line, along the Kivenlahti-Kauklahti and Matinkylä-Espoon keskus public transport corridors. 

The city will prepare for future needs for business premises by maintaining the most attractive workplace clusters and creating new opportunities, especially in the centres and on the edges of the urban structure. Within the dense urban structure, commercial areas will be converted to residential use in Vanttila, Tapiola and Suomenoja. An extensive municipal engineering service network ensures functional services as the urban structure becomes denser. The master plan also supports the implementation of carbon-neutral energy solutions.

In the city growing through infill construction, special attention must be paid to securing services and local recreational areas. For this reason, space is reserved for them in the master plan. The growing city will continue to preserve its valuable cultural environments in the future.

The green area network will largely remain as it is, and Central Park will be expanded in comparison with the existing master plans. The plan will include new nature reserve areas and promote the preservation of natural values in areas that are particularly important for biodiversity. The master plan will also promote the safeguarding and development of the ecological network by indicating the most important ecological corridors and their development areas. The master plan, which is based on infill construction, will mainly enable construction outside of green areas, thus supporting biodiversity and protecting carbon sinks and stocks.