FINLAND: Tangential tram Route 13 serving northeast Helsinki opened on August 12. Developed at cost of €79·3m, it includes 4·5 km of new 1 000 mm gauge infrastructure in its route from the northern terminus at Maistraatintori (Pasila) to Nihti in the port area east of the city centre.
From a connection with the existing tram network at Velodromi, east of Pasila railway station, Route 13 runs east on a short section of new reserved track through a park to then in the centre reservation of Hermannin Rantatie to reach Kalasatama metro station. This parallels the former Sörnäinen harbour freight line closed in 2009. South from Kalasatama the line runs on street to a turning loop at Nihti.
Running at up to 50 km/h is permitted between Kalasatama and Velodromi.
From 2027 Nihti is due to become a tram interchange, linking with the Crown Bridges line currently under construction east from the city centre to Laajasalo island.
Transport authority HSL inaugurated Route 13 with trams running every 10 min starting from the Maistraatintori turning loop west of Pasila.
