The main objective of the MAL 2023 Plan is to make the Helsinki region carbon neutral, healthy and successful. “With the MAL 2023 plan, we are building a region where present and future residents can live happy lives and where day-to-day travel is smooth. At the same time, we need to respond to growth in a sustainable way and ensure good conditions for business and other actors. We need the cooperation of the whole Helsinki region and all parties involved especially in order to achieve the emission reduction targets,” says Sini Puntanen, the Director responsible for work on MAL 2023 at HSL.
400,000 more residents by 2040
The Helsinki region is expected to grow from its current 1.5 million inhabitants to almost 2 million inhabitants by 2040.
In order to respond to the growth, 16,500 dwellings are built annually. New construction will be mainly directed to existing areas, in centers and along rail links. This means a more compact urban structure. A variety of high-quality housing is built for the needs of the residents of the Helsinki region. Neighborhoods that are at risk of lagging behind will be vigorously reformed.
Exploiting the existing public transport network
A sustainable transport system plays a key role in the MAL 2023 Plan. Public transport relies primarily on rail transport. It is important to ensure the functioning of the existing public transport system. Therefore, the projects included in the plan include the construction of commuter train depots, major upgrades of train and metro stations and the renewal of the metro train control system.
Ticket prices have a major impact on the popularity of public transport. Lower fares would have wide benefits for the whole region. Motorists would also benefit from increased use of public transport because it would reduce congestion. The MAL 2023 Plan includes a proposal for significant annual state support of EUR 150 million for public transport. It would allow public transport ticket prices to be reduced by about one third.
Walking and cycling are also an important part of a sustainable transport system. The missing sections of the regional main cycling network and improvements to the network are included in the plan. A regional program to promote walking is under development.
Road network will be developed taking into account the needs of freight transport and rest areas will be built for heavy goods vehicles.
Predicting the future exceptionally challenging
The MAL 2023 plan has been developed amidst huge global turmoil. The Covid pandemic, war in Ukraine and the sharp inflation of the past year have made it more difficult to predict the future. Cyclical conditions are deteriorating. The impacts of the plan have been extensively and comprehensively assessed. The impact assessment was supported by traffic forecasts and expert assessments.
The region is expected to continue to grow and we need a range of measures to mitigate the climate change. The means and measures set out in the plan are not nearly enough to achieve the carbon emission reduction targets for trasport.
In order to reduce emissions, traffic volumes need to be reduced and propulsion systems need to be renewed. As the MAL 2023 Plan does not include measures to limit car traffic, traffic volumes will increase as the region grows. It is estimated that passenger and bus transport is rapidly switching to use electricity and other low-emission fuels, but the modernization of propulsion systems of heavy-duty vehicles needs to be accelerated. “We need solid cooperation and new measures on the part of the state, the region and the municipalities in order to achieve the emission reduction target for transport,” says Sini Puntanen.
Next step: MAL Agreement
HSL is responsible for the preparation of the transport system section of the MAL 2023 Plan as well as for the plan’s impact assessment. The plan is due to be approved by regional decision-makers in autumn 2023, after which it will move into implementation.
The Executive Board of HSL approved the transport system section of the MAL 2023 Plan on the part of its member municipalities on 12 September 2023. In the case of the municipalities that are not members of HSL, the transport sections of the plan will be approved separately for each municipality based on a proposal by the KUUMA Board. The Helsinki Region Cooperation Assembly (HSYK) discussed the land use and housing sections of the plan at its meeting on 12 September 2023. Once it has approved the plan, HSYK will send it to the municipalities to be approved.
The MAL 2023 Plan is the starting point for an MAL agreement between the state and the municipalities. Preparation of the agreement will commence in autumn 2023. The agreement will set out the most important measures for the coming years, such as large railway projects and the volume of housing production. It is particularly important that the state provides more support for public transport to reduce ticket prices and improve the level of service in the region.
What is MAL planning?
- The Helsinki region land use, housing and transport plan, MAL 2023, is a strategic plan for the 14 municipalities in the Helsinki region. (MAL comes from the Finnish words for land use, housing and transport.) The plan sets out a common target of the region’s municipalities for the development of the region until 2040 and creates a vision until 2060. The plan also includes a statutory transport system plan.
- An important part of the planning is an impact assessment to ensure that the planned measures are effective and take the Helsinki region in the desired direction.
- MAL planning is carried out on a four year cycle. Municipalities are responsible for the planning of land use and housing, while HSL is responsible for the Helsinki region transport system plan and the impact assessment of the MAL plan.
- The Helsinki Region Cooperation Assembly (HSYK) and the municipalities in the region will decide on the land use and housing sections of the plan. The transport system section of the plan will be approved by HSL Executive Board for its member municipalities and for other municipalities by the KUUMA Board and the municipalities concerned.
- More information at hsl.fi