Sörnäinen Harbour

Former harbour in Helsinki, Finland
60°10′46″N 24°58′31″E / 60.1795°N 24.9752°E / 60.1795; 24.9752DetailsOpened1863Closed2008Operated byPort of HelsinkiOwned byCity of HelsinkiType of harbourCoastal naturalDraft depth9.6 metres (31 ft)[1]

Sörnäinen Harbour (Finnish: Sörnäisten satama, Swedish: Sörnäs hamn) was for nearly one and a half centuries a major harbour and freight terminal in the Port of Helsinki, located in the Sörnäinen district on the eastern shore of the Helsinki city centre area.[2]

It was opened in 1863 to serve mainly the country's timber export trade, in 1889 an oil import terminal was added, and more recently containerised cargo and some passenger traffic.[2][3] The harbour was finally closed down after 145 years of operation in November 2008, when the new Vuosaari Harbour was opened in the eastern suburb, and the facilities moved there.[3][4] The only remaining functions relate to the adjacent Hanasaari Power Plant, which is itself being gradually decommissioned.[2]

The port facilities were connected to the rail network at Pasila station via a branch line called Sörnäinen harbour rail, which originally ran through Vallila, but which in 1965 was re-routed around the inner city area via Kumpula.[5]

Since its closure, the harbour area has been redeveloped for residential, retail and leisure use, as part of the Kalasatama development.[2]

The harbour was also commonly referred to as 'Sompasaari Harbour', after a small island which originally was located immediately to its south, but which the harbour development had subsumed under reclaimed land.[3]

References

  1. ^ "Fairway card - Helsinki 9.6m" (PDF) (in Finnish). Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d "Pilvenpiirtäjien varjossa – radioessee Kalasatamasta muistuttaa sataman kolmesta vaiheesta". Radio 1 (in Finnish). Yle. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  3. ^ a b c "Historia" (in Finnish). Port of Helsinki. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  4. ^ "Sörnäisten satama muuttaa yhdessä yössä". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 17 November 2008. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  5. ^ "Kumpulan satamarata käyttöön (reprint)". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 19 October 1965. Retrieved 13 August 2023.