Tallinn drawing up tramline project to Lasnamäe mega hospital
The city of Tallinn is currently in the process of creating a draft plan to extend the existing Kadriorg tramline to eventually lead to the Tallinn Hospital development in Lasnamäe, Tallinn mayor Mihhail Kõlvart (Center) said.
Kõlvart said the city must first solve the exhausted capacity issues of Viru Square (Viru Väljak) and the tramline to the Old Harbor before taking on another infrastructure project.
The design process of the Old Harbor tramline is set to take place in the ongoing year. "Development of the harbor tram will see tram corridors on Gonsiori tänav, A.Laikmaa tänav, Hobujaama tänav and the harbor area, which will help reduce traffic on Viru Square," Kõlvart said.
The mayor added that an analysis on public transportation demand must be conducted before developing any other tram routes. At the same time, the city is also tackling a tramline to Lasnamäe.
"Draft plans are currently being finished to extend the Kadriorg tramline to Tallinn Hospital, including alternative sketches to the Mäe Gate of the Song Festival Grounds," Kõlvart said.
The city is also conducting a space analysis to extend the Old Harbor tram until Port Noblessner going along Kalaranna tänav. Kõlvart said the city is investigating if, where and when the city would require new tramlines.
If the Old Harbor tram receives €26 million in EU funding, Kõlvart said the government has agreed to allocate another €40 million from EU resources to develop possible tramlines, supplemented by funding from the capital city itself, amounting to €17 million.
Kõlvart also said the city is completing a transportation model, based on which Tallinn can make data-driven decisions on transportation type and route network questions. "An important input for the planning of new tramlines will be the future vision of Tallinn's public transportation route network," he noted.
Minister of Finance Keit Pentus-Rosimannus (Reform) said on Thursday that Estonia is planning to seek €280 million in funding from the European recovery and resilience facility for the construction of Tallinn Hospital after previously hoping to receive altogether €380 million from the Commission.
The estimated total cost of Tallinn Hospital amounts to €520 million with VAT. The cost of planning, design and construction will make up €450 million of the sum and investments in devices €70 million. The gross area of the planned hospital totals around 127,000 square meters. The project would be historic in both volume and cost.
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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste
