According to plans, reconstruction work on Liivalaia tänav is set to begin in spring 2027. The street is slated to be transformed into a new, European-style urban space by October 2029, promised Pärtel-Peeter Pere (Reform), Tallinn's deputy mayor for urban environment and public works.

The city has announced the design procurement for the street, with the deadline set for March 7. At the beginning of the year, as design specifications were being finalized, it was also determined how many lanes Liivalaia tänav would have in the future.

"There will be precisely 2+2 lanes for vehicles, and on top of that, a public transport lane in the middle for both trams and buses," Pere explained.

Liivalaia tänav will also have dedicated bike lanes and sidewalks. According to Pere, experts consider placing the tramway in the center of the street to be the most efficient solution for ensuring the smooth, congestion-free flow of traffic. To help reduce traffic noise, the street will be designed for a speed limit of 40 km/h.

Kristjan Järvan (Isamaa), Tallinn's deputy mayor for transport, pointed to the Liivalaia-Pärnu maantee intersection as the biggest challenge in the planned reconstruction project, where the corridor is narrowed by the corner of the Tallinn Polytechnic School building.

The city must also be prepared for the possibility of needing archaeological studies along the entire length of Liivalaia tänav, as the corridor runs near sites including the Church of Our Lady of Kazan and the historical site of Tallinn's Võllamägi — literally "Gallow's Hill" — the site of centuries of executions.

Järvan recalled the expansion of Tallinn Secondary School of Science, where archaeological studies ended up costing a total of €1.2 million.

"There could definitely be something there — there always is downtown," he acknowledged. "If archaeologists find something, there's no fixed limit or restrictions on how far they can go with their excavation," he noted.

The planned future tram along Liivalaia will initially turn onto Pärnu maantee. However, how it will eventually connect to the planned Kristiine transport hub still remains uncertain for now.

"In order to build the Kristiine transport hub, it's of course vital for the tram to continue on to Suur-Ameerika tänav, but right now there's no clear solution on how to resolve the space constraints there," Järvan acknowledged.

According to the deputy mayor for transport, the city's investment execution rate in 2023 was 60 percent, meaning that more than half — but far from all — of the planned projects were carried out.

With the city simultaneously working on the Pärnu maantee bike lane, the Liivalaia overhaul and the Main Street project, he questioned whether the city will be able to stay on schedule.

"I'm worried about whether there are sufficient resources for design and city oversight," Järvan admitted. "But the Urban Environment and Public Works Department will have to provide a proper response."

Pere, meanwhile, is more optimistic.

"Tallinn is taking on large projects, but nothing beyond its capacity," the urban environment and public works deputy mayor confirmed.

"In the coming years, we will begin overhauling Liivalaia, likewise designing the Suur-Ameerika tramway and [moving forward with] Main Street," Pere explained. "All of these will improve people's quality of life, reduce noise and support businesses. The City of Tallinn has not and will not be bogged down by major infrastructure projects in the coming years."

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