The area and its functions make it a versatile part of the Vaasa city center area. About a third of the area is a combination of industrial and port areas in the process of change, a third of residential and hotel areas, and the last third local recreational areas. The port and a neighbouring power plant with their surrounding areas are central parts of Vaskiluoto.
Vaasa region energy technology concentration strengthened by new Wärtsilä technology centre
In August of 2018, Wärtsilä announced the building of a new Smart Technology Hub research, product development and production centre in Vaskiluoto, and as a result of this, commuting to the Vaskiluoto area will increase substantially. Wärtsilä is the largest private employer in the Vaasa region and an estimated 1 600 employees will transfer to the new spaces by the summer of 2022. The development of Vaskiluoto has already attracted other companies to the area and the traffic volumes will increase even further.
Cycling along Vaskiluoto cycling route
Vaasa is a great cycling city. 81 % of Vaasa residents live a cycling distance from the city centre, that is less than 5 kilometres. There are 179 kilometres of cycling paths. The effortlessness of cycling is influenced by road planning and events promoting cycling. Cycling related events in Vaasa include Cycling Week in May and Mobility Week in September.
The Vaskiluoto cycling route was completed at the end of 2020. It is hoped that the new cycling route will bring improvements to commuting. It is mentioned among the targets that a bicycle should be a fully competitive alternative to a car in terms of speed, especially in the section between the city center and Vaskiluoto. The city of Vaasa will continue to invest in improving cycling conditions, because investing in cycling is extremely profitable for the vitality and wellbeing of the whole city.
- Read more (in Finnish) about Vaskiluoto cycling route
- Improving cycling in Vaasa (in Finnish)
- Vaasa city cycling map
Public transport
You can try a schedule search in the national Perille.fi service, which combines schedule and route information from different service providers. Information can also be searched for example by municipality or service provider.
Current information about Vaasa city region public transport can be found here:
Parking
The built part of Vaskiluoto is very compact and versatile in terms of services. About a third of the area is industrial and port areas in the process of change, and its road networks and services will be developed in the coming years. Currently, there are only a few public parking areas, but more are continuously being developed. Information on public parking options is available here.
- A parking area with 31 places will be built in the beginning of Kaarlentie street (in Finnish)
- Vaasa city parking information and parking surveillance (in Finnish)
- Free and unguarded parking area near the passenger terminal of the port
- Public parking area in connection to Vaskiluoto football field
Infrastructure developments, plans and zoning
In the coming years, many interesting things are happening in Vaskiluoto and the area will be developed in many ways. The city of Vaasa will for example develop street networks and sustainable mobility.
- Sustainable mobility program
- New street section of Kaarlentie will be opened for traffic (in Finnish)
Current zones and plans
- Vaskiluoto component master plan 2040
- Port inspection
- Smart Technology Hub (ready in 2019)
- Reininkatu area (ready in 2020)
- Vaskiluoto forest general plan
Port developments
Exciting things are happening at Kvarken Ports, the joint venture that combines the ports of Vaasa and Umeå. The construction of the new passenger ferry, Aurora Botnia, is almost completed, and overall, the future looks bright. As the new ferry arrives, it will double freight capacity.
With an efficient ferry, it is possible to make more trips and further increase the freight volume in both Vaasa and Umeå. More frequent trips indicate that the ferry stays at the port for shorter periods of time, which sets tighter requirements for the whole port process. In fact, a new quay is being built and the terminal is being redesigned at Vaasa port.
The operations need to take being environmentally friendly into account, since it is required by different operators and EU legislation. At Vaasa port, the option of reaching the port by train has been invested in.
Boat berths
A common mode of transportation in Vaskiluoto is boating. Boat clubs are significant user groups of Vaskiluoto and the guest port is an important part of the tourism activity.
There are private docks and berths in Kuulahti of Vaskiluoto.
Other
Information on smart mobility has been compiled in the project MoveIT (2019-2021)
