The experiment will last until autumn 2025
The ban on studded tyres on Lönnrotinkatu applies to a section of approximately 900 metres between Mannerheimintie and Hietalahdenkatu. The one-way Lönnrotinkatu runs west from the city centre, serving as a passage from Pohjoisesplanadi towards Ruoholahti. It is also used to drive to the Kamppi and Punavuori districts.
The road sign prohibiting driving through with studded tyres is in accordance with the new Road Traffic Act. It will be tested on Lönnrotinkatu until autumn 2025. The experiment to ban studded tyres is helping to study how the ban will affect air quality and the popularity of studless winter tyres. At the same time, the consequences and appropriateness of the ban and people’s compliance with it will be assessed.
The ban can be seen in the road signs added along the street. Air quality and studded tyre monitoring devices have also been fitted along the street.
Area where studded tyres are banned and alternative routes (PDF)
Driving to properties with studded tyres still allowed
The prohibition sign still allows motorists with studded tyres to drive to properties on the street.
Instead of using Lönnrotinkatu, Ruoholahti can be reached via Mannerheimintie and Pohjoinen Rautatiekatu. The alternative route is approximately 300 metres longer. The alternative route to the Kamppi and Punavuori districts is via Bulevardi, which extends the journey by about 200 metres.
The impact of the ban on studded tyres on businesses along Lönnrotinkatu and nearby has been estimated to be minor, as have the business effects based on the accessibility of car traffic. The effects of the ban will already be assessed during the trial period, and the arrangements can be modified as necessary.
Frequently asked questions
The purpose of the pilot is to establish whether bans on studded tyres can be used to increase the proportion of friction tyres. Helsinki is committed to its objective of having studded tyres comprise 30% of all tyres used in winter traffic by the winter of 2030–2031. The current proportion of studded tyres is 70%. The objective is to reduce street dust, noise and wear on the streets.
When selecting a street for the pilot, streets with the most significant air quality problems – as indicated by surveys and expert assessments – were chosen for the comparison. After that, the streets were evaluated in terms of traffic aspects, and having a clear alternative connection for the street was one significant factor in the process.
Lönnrotinkatu is a chasm-like and busy street, causing it to have high street dust concentrations from time to time, particularly in spring.
In Norway, fees on studded tyres were introduced in the early 2000s.
- First in Oslo, later in Bergen, Trondheim, Stavanger and Kristiansand
- The cities have a joint fee system in which a day, month or season specific payment entitles a person to use studded tyres within the area of the municipality
- In Oslo, the proportion of studded tyres has decreased significantly (from 85% in 1995 to 10% in 2020)
In Sweden, a street-specific ban on studded tyres was issued in Stockholm in 2010.
- Since 2016, Stockholm has had a ban on studded tyres on three main streets
- Today, the proportion of studded tyres is roughly 30% on the streets with the ban and 50% in all of the city
- The City is pursuing a change in legislation that would facilitate replacing the ban on studded tyres with a studded tyre fee
Voisitko Marek kirjoittaa tähän vielä vastauksen?
The pilot has not been found to have significant impacts on businesses, as business can be conducted on the properties involved regardless of tyre type. Furthermore, due to the alternative route arrangement, the ban does not have any significant impacts on the availability of car transport or other modes of transportation (the alternative route is roughly 300 metres longer). The improved air quality may actually have a positive impact on some businesses.
The pilot will affect residents relatively little. The ban on studded tyres targets through traffic, not car journeys that start and end on the street.
Cars with studded tyres will still be allowed to drive onto the properties involved, so the answer is yes.
Studies have shown that up to half of all street dust is caused by studded tyres. When the proportion of studded tyres in winter traffic decreases, so does the amount of street dust. This has also been confirmed through modelling. Stockholm’s ban on studded tyres shows that the impacts on air quality also expand to other parts of the city. Helsinki Region Environmental Services (HSY) will be using a particle measurement device to monitor concentrations on Lönnrotinkatu before and during the pilot.
Studded tyres are noisier than other types. Thus, increasing the proportion of friction tyres will decrease noise and improve the soundscape of the city.
Traffic transitions are always a challenge when talking about a ban issued on a single street. No significant transitions to the local street network are expected.
Transitions will occur particularly in the Pohjoinen Rautatienkatu or Bulevardi sections. On either street, the increase in the amount of daily traffic will not significantly undermine the capacity of the street, but the smoothness of tram traffic on Bulevardi and the pleasantness of both streets must be monitored during the pilot.
On main streets, wear caused by studded tyres is easily the most significant reason for renewing the pavement. At worst, the pavements of main streets may have to be renewed every few years. Friction tyres wear the road surface less than studded tyres, and should the proportion of friction tyres increase, significant savings could be achieved in winter traffic with regard to pavement renewal costs.
The use of friction tyres has not been found to increase accidents in cities (e.g. Stockholm and Oslo) in which they make up the majority of winter tyres.
On ice, the traction of friction tyres is not as good as that of studded tyres. However, difficult icy conditions are considerably rarer in Helsinki than in other parts of the country, and salt-based anti-skid treatment prevents road surfaces from freezing.
Traffic safety is affected more by driving habits than the type of tyre used.
The proportion of studded tyres will be monitored technically with a detector on Lönnrotinkatu before and after the ban.