Municipalities continue negotiations over West Metro line construction costs in Finland

Negotiations among municipalities concerning the construction costs of the West Metro line are still ongoing, as reported by Salo’s mayor, Anna-Kristiina Korhonen, to Yle. This fall, the municipalities have been discussing how to divide the costs for the first phase of the railway’s construction among themselves, with participants including Turku, Espoo, Salo, Vihti, Lohja, and Kirkkonummi. Notably, Helsinki has opted out of contributing to the funding for this phase.

The municipalities are resistant to their allocated payment shares. In summer, an initial agreement was reached between the municipalities and the state regarding the construction phase costs. Under this agreement, local governments would share a €400 million portion, with the state also providing €400 million. Additionally, an estimated €500 million in external funding is required.

In July, the project lost out on €176.28 million in funding requested from the EU’s CEF, leading to a surge in criticism regarding the project’s costs among municipalities. Korhonen indicated in an email response that there is still dissatisfaction with the cost allocations. “The municipalities’ share still seems too high,” she noted. There remains a possibility for the project to secure EU funding in future application rounds.

With plans for construction set to commence next year, municipalities are under pressure to include related planning costs in their budgets for 2024. However, Korhonen stated there is currently no specific information concerning Salo’s payment share. “There is no proposal on the matter yet. Depending on the progress of negotiations, it is possible that the partnership agreement will not meet the budget timeline and will be addressed separately.” A press conference regarding the results of municipal negotiations is scheduled for Wednesday afternoon.