The views of people and business life are valuable in infrastructure planning. They help us understand customer needs and the impacts of our operations on people’s daily lives and the business operations of companies. Local knowledge brings added value to planning.
“The best time to influence infrastructure construction is during the planning process. The earlier you jump in, the better“, says Minna Raatikka, citizens customer relationship specialist, at the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency.
Before construction begins, the new transport route has probably been planned for years. In larger transport infrastructure projects, planning may have lasted up to decades, including, for example, the preliminary planning of the transport route, a general plan, an environmental impact assessment, as well as a road or railway plan. As the plans become more specific, the boundary conditions are fixed and thus the matters that can be influenced decrease.
For example, general planning decides on the big picture, such as the approximate location of a new road or railway. In the road and railway plan phases, the plans are specified and detailed. At this point, no major changes can be made to the location of the road or railway, for example. Thus, it is crucial to understand which issues can and cannot be influenced at each planning stage.
Familiarise yourself with infrastructure planning and participate!
Are you interested in infrastructure planning and wondering where to get more information?
We have produced short introductory videos on the general plan, road plan and railway plan. You can watch the video of the general plan below.
If you are interested in planning projects in your region, you should also familiarise yourself with the plans at vayliensuunnittelu.fi The service contains general, road and railway plans prepared by the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency and ELY Centres, as well as information on their progress and the related interaction events.
“We want to lower the threshold for people to participate in planning and, at the same time, communicate clearly with citizens and companies. One example is the stronger utilisation of data based on data models in the visualisation of plans and the collection of feedback,” says Raatikka.
Feedback and opinions are important to us not only in planning but also in construction and maintenance. Through the feedback channel, you can give feedback on roads, railway stations, the railway network and waterways. The service also contains short articles on topics that concern citizens about transport infrastructure or our activities.