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Increasing topical and independent research-based knowledge to support decision-making and urban development is a long-term goal of Espoo, Helsinki and Vantaa, the three major cities in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. This need for knowledge is met by a new form of research collaboration launched in 2024 with the University of Helsinki and Aalto University: the Kaupunkivaikutus (‘Urban effect’) project. 

The project is seeking to fund research of a high scholarly standard whose results respond more directly to the information needs of the cities and help solve questions of strategic importance to the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.

In autumn 2024, key research themes were surveyed in all three cities, and the first research projects have now been selected. In the selection, particular emphasis was placed on the utilisation of new datasets and measurable observations on impact.

The funding, roughly €400,000, was divided between four research projects of a maximum duration of two years. 

Urban nature to support climate adaptation in dense urban structure

CoolGreen, a project carried out by Professor of Urban Meteorology Leena Järvi (University of Helsinki) and Associate Professor of Landscape Architecture Ranja Hautamäki (Aalto University), assesses and models the climate impacts of densification and the cooling potential of greening. 

The project assesses how urban nature influences the heat island effect, how densification plans in land use affect the cooling benefits produced by urban nature, and how effectively temperatures can be influenced in densely built areas through greening. 

The heat island effect denotes higher temperatures in urban areas, boosted by the warming climate and the densification of urban structures.

“We lack both research-based knowledge, particularly in the northern regions, as well as strategic goals and practical application examples of considering the heat island effect in land use planning. The project produces the concrete knowledge needed for land use and strategic climate action,” Järvi and Hautamäki state.

The project’s societal impact extends beyond the cities of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area by producing policy briefs for growing urban areas.

Information on the impact of weighted-curriculum education and needs-based funding in comprehensive school

Doctoral Researcher Rasmus Mellanen’s (University of Helsinki) research project is divided into two components.

The first one provides the cities with information on the extent to and ways in which needs-based funding affects pupils’ learning outcomes and futures. Needs-based funding refers to the allocation of additional resources to relatively disadvantaged schools. 

The project also investigates how pupils benefit from access to weighted-curriculum education. One interesting question is whether weighted basic education increases inequality in our comprehensive schools. 

The cities will gain knowledge on the effects of participation in weighted-curriculum education on learning outcomes, educational choices and, potentially, success in the labour market after school.

“For example, having children study only the weighted subject in a single group and otherwise attend school scattered among normal classes could be a less unequal way of organising weighted-curriculum education. Then again, the impact assessment of needs-based funding can be used directly when deciding on the amount and use of such funding,” Mellanen says.

Impact of rail traffic in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area on individual mobility and business operations

A project headed by Assistant Professor of Real Estate Oskari Harjunen and Doctoral Researcher Touko Väänänen (Aalto University) produces knowledge for transport investment decisions. 

Several new rail connections are being built and planned in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. The project focuses on how the new rail connections affect car ownership, kilometres travelled and congestion reduction among the region’s residents, as well as how the realised rail connections have affected, for example, business profitability, the establishment of new businesses or employment.

“The effect of rail traffic on the labour market and people’s mobility have been studied to some extent, but not much in Finland. Our study offers new and long-awaited information on the effects of transport projects in Finland’s operating environment,” Harjunen notes.

In particular, the research group assesses the effects of the western underground line to Espoo and the Jokeri Light Rail line on the residents and businesses of the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. The findings can be utilised to assess the impact of future rail projects and in transport and traffic planning in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area.

Research on road network disruptions in planning urban transport system resilience 

A research project headed by Pablo Warnes and Prottoy Akbar, Assistant Professors in Urban Economics (Aalto University), assesses and describes the extent to which traffic disruptions slow down travel, how road users adapt to disruptions and the impact of the choices made by road users on the rest of the transport network.

“There is currently very little empirical information on which factors affect the flexibility of the transport network and how future challenges, such as population growth and climate change, will affect traffic and transport and the needs to develop infrastructure,” Warnes and Akbar say.

In the research project, phenomena associated with the road system and travel behaviour are investigated using real-time data on travel times, extreme weather conditions, road accidents and traffic flows in all major Nordic cities.

The project develops a new kind of data infrastructure, for example, by processing millions of trips simulated on Google Maps to determine real-time travel times. 

The aim is to produce more information on the factors that make urban transport networks increasingly resilient against traffic disruptions, enabling cities to better adapt to various shocks. 

Research-based and topical knowledge in support of decision-making

The Kaupunkivaikutus collaboration project is a form of research collaboration where 

• The Helsinki, Espoo and Vantaa municipalities collaborate closely with researchers from the University of Helsinki and Aalto University
• Each year, two to four high-quality research projects related to urban areas are funded. Roughly €400,000 of funding is available to the projects annually
• The goal is to bring up-to-date and reliable research-based knowledge to support decision-making and development in cities
• New and existing data in cities are used with an approach focused on impact
• The smooth collaboration of research projects with the cities is promoted by a monitoring group established for each project and composed of city representatives