The current urban planning in Helsinki seems to have one main goal: to make moving around the city as difficult as possible. Traffic lanes are being closed, street parking is reduced, and roads are blocked. Grandiose public transport investments are being pushed through even at the risk of ticket prices becoming unaffordable for low-income residents. Meanwhile, there seems to be a blank cheque for building bridges exclusively for cycling, all funded by taxpayers.
It’s time to move from traffic jams back to smooth urban mobility. That includes the right and opportunity to travel by private car. A bit of common sense wouldn’t hurt either – we shouldn’t build more public transport than there are people to use it. A slushy or icy street won’t become a cyclist’s dream just because it’s drawn that way on a planning map.
Public services can only exist where the economy is strong.
Public services can only exist where the economy is strong. Spending must be prioritized wisely. We must not live at the expense of future generations. Especially in today’s global situation, we can’t afford irresponsible handout politics.
Taxes are not collected from Helsinki residents so that city councillors can send them abroad as aid, or to guarantee every possible service to fortune-seekers who end up in Helsinki. Services funded by the work of Helsinki’s own people belong to them. Those in real need must be prioritized over people residing in the country illegally.
The backbone of all well-being is work and entrepreneurship. Helsinki must ensure that it is worthwhile to work and run a business in this city. Much depends on the vitality of the city center, which must not be endangered by ideological green urban planning or by blocking the main access routes into the city.
During this council term, the leadership of Helsinki has been adrift.
During this council term, the leadership of Helsinki has been adrift. The city hasn’t even managed a basic task like paying its own employees on time. Helsinki’s data security has also been in disarray, with sensitive personal data of schoolchildren and their parents exposed to hackers.
Almost every week, we read about new financial failures in Helsinki – million-euro bike parking projects only used by Wolt couriers, tens of millions wasted on unused IT systems, or the ever-growing final bill of the Crown Bridges project.
A capital city simply cannot be run like this. Helsinki needs a new direction.
