Sometimes it seems that nothing makes a Finn happier than a complete failure. The most irritating thing is when a public project exceeds its budget, schedule and taxpayers' tolerance. The Crown Bridges project in Helsinki initially seemed like a particularly perfect target for a disaster.
KUN When plans for the Kruunusilti Bridge between Laajasalo and the city center became public, the people quickly found a common tune. The chord progression progressed in a minor key.
The planning table was clearly a millennium-long scam and legalized taxpayer robbery. There was even talk of useless billion-dollar bridges, images of trams rattling with emptiness and a city treasury gaping empty.
Then the controversial investment decision was made, and the bridge work began. And it continued. And it continued.
Something very undramatic happened. The client, designers and builders shared the risks and made decisions together. There was enough mundane and scandal-free drudgery with the bridge and the immediately associated street and power line relocation work.
The story was starting to get boring. It seemed like the bridge connection would be completed on schedule and on budget, at 326 million euros. This is how it finally happened.
PERHAPS What happened ultimately says more about us than the bridge. We are so afraid of taking risks and failing that if we can't stop big growth investments in the starting blocks, we'd rather just conjure them up. Just to be safe.
In the case of the Crown Bridges, the citizens managed to switch from minor to major in one fell swoop. That didn't even bother the happiest nation in the world: just look at the happy pictures of the townspeople celebrating with crowns on their heads at the bridge's opening!
WHAT Could we learn from all this?
At least that boredom is a completely underrated superpower in the infrastructure industry.
There's no need for fancy in the industry. Infra is tough boots, precise digital modeling, and the ability to keep their word even when the freezing sea wind tries to freeze the construction site. In close cooperation with decision-makers, clients, and designers, you can expect a steady and reliable execution from this team, even in difficult conditions.
Alliance projects in particular have tended to be completed on schedule over the past ten years. The same boring story has been repeated: Tampere Coastal Tunnel, Jokeri Light Rail, Vt 4 Kirri–Tikkakoski, E18 Hamina–Vaalimaa, Vt 6 Taavetti–Lappeenranta and the Kalasatama to Pasila project. Each was completed ahead of schedule, under budget or both, although many of the projects were initially met with skepticism and opposition.
The second lesson is that it is high time for Finns to start trusting their wings and their obvious opportunities. Unnecessary fear must not prevent sensible growth investments.
For example, the Crown Bridges employed thousands and brought in over a hundred million euros in tax revenue during the construction period alone. The revenue is used to finance the very public services whose disappearance we are currently mourning. The actual benefits, however, accrue more slowly: they are seen as smoother everyday life for hundreds of thousands of people and time savings that do not make a fuss about themselves.
BOREDOM Superpower is the antidote to unnecessary fears. It is brave to let it out of the bottle – it will not lead to destruction. On the contrary: it will move us forward as a society.
I hope that one day we will have the courage to believe together that we can build a tunnel to Europe or a bridge to Stockholm, if we so choose.
Finnish infrastructure expertise has taken a huge leap forward precisely in collaboration. All parties involved in construction have reason to be proud: we have learned to build even demanding projects in a boring way, without making a fuss and too early.
Anu-Liina Ginström
Director, Communications and Impact
anu-liina.ginstrom@rt.fi + 358 50 330 8131INFRA ry
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