Kulosaaren Bridge Audio guide

The bridge that replaced a wooden structure

Kulosaaren Bridge is an important transport structure in Helsinki, completed in 1957. It spans the waterway between Kulosaari and Sornainen and carries the six-lane Itavayla, one of the city’s main thoroughfares. The bridge in its present form was created in response to the sharp rise in car traffic after the Second World War.

Its predecessor was a wooden swing bridge from 1919, which carried not only road traffic but also a tram line. By the 1930s, however, it was no longer sufficient in capacity. The new bridge was designed by Bruno Kivisalo after a competition announced in 1949. Construction began in 1953, and it opened without ceremony on November 6, 1957.

Engineering and operation

The bridge is 321 meters long and 32 meters wide. It consists of a steel load-bearing structure and is among the first welded bridges in Finland. The design used the then-new grid theory, which was later applied to other girder bridges as well. Today, around 50,000 vehicles cross it each day, and it also carries cyclists and pedestrians.

In recent decades, it has become clear that the bridge is heavily burdened and structurally problematic. Damage identified in 2020 led to the conclusion that repairs would not be economically worthwhile. In 2023, demolition was decided on, with work set to begin no earlier than 2027.