The metro will renew Soukka, but the spirit of the 60s will remain
The extension of the West Metro from Matinkylä to Kivenlahti will be finished in 2023. The extension of the metro line will bring five new stations to Espoo: Finnoo, Kaitaa, Soukka, Espoonlahti and Kivenlahti. This series of articles introduces the areas surrounding each of the stations, one at a time.
Soukka metro station will be located below Soukantori, in the immediate vicinity of Soukka shopping centre. The station will have two entrances. From the Yläkartanontie entrance, the metro platform can be accessed both by inclined lift and escalator. The Soukantori entrance will only have lifts to accommodate the almost 50-metre vertical rise.
You can find more information about Soukka metro station here(external link).
Soukka metro station has been influenced by the surrounding buildings that embody 1960s modernism. The station will feature Taneli Rautiainen’s art installation Sfäärit (Spheres), created with lights and sheet metal structures. The work will consist of four different elements, located in different parts of the metro station. The spheres depict the rock, veil of clouds, shooting stars and constellations. More information about station art(external link).
When the metro service starts, Soukka metro station will have 350 park-and-ride spaces for bicycles, located in Yläkartanonaukio and Soukantori and on Soukantie. There will be 28 temporary park-and-ride spaces for cars when the metro service starts.
Around a thousand new residents
The arrival of the metro at Soukka is expected to boost complementary construction in the area, as well as new replacement construction. It is estimated that the metro could increase the population of Soukka by about a thousand residents.
Both private landowners and the City of Espoo own land near Soukka metro station. There is also land owned by the City a little further away from the metro entrances, along Yläkartanontie and Alakartanontie. The progress of complementary construction in Soukka will depend on the landowners in the area and the progress of town planning.
Soukka shopping centre has multiple owners.
The Soukantori water pool will be renovated
The City of Espoo is currently developing the surroundings of Soukantori. However, the concrete look of the 60s will be retained.
The street improvement work in the area started in the summer of 2021 and will be completed in November 2022, before the metro service to Kivenlahti starts. The section of Soukanraitti between Yläkartanonaukio and Soukka sports field is being renovated, and Soukantori will undergo a facelift.
The outdoor water pool at Soukantori, which has been out of use for about five years, will be renovated. It is expected to be operational in the summer of 2023. In the summer, the pool will be filled with water, and in the winter, it will have special lighting. In the winter, old photographs of Soukka will be projected onto the bottom of the pool.
The Soukantie pedestrian and bicycle underpass between Soukka sports field and Soukanpuisto will be redesigned. The current underpass is low, narrow and dark. The renovation will make it higher, brighter and more spacious, with artwork by children on the walls. During the renovation of the underpass, traffic will be diverted.
The current Soukansilta bridge over Yläkartanontie will be renovated.
A new retaining wall will be built for Soukantie, with an image of tree roots engraved into the concrete surface. New retaining walls and a new set of stairs will be built in Yläkartanonaukio.
The intersection of Soukantie and Yläkartanontie will be simplified with a roundabout.
Read the other articles in the series:
The maritime atmosphere of Finnoo can be seen in the metro station
Kaitaa, mostly consisting of detached houses, will have an urban metro centre
- Urban development