A new bridge connecting Finland with Sweden has been proposed by the Finnish Government. The bridge would connect Vaasa in Finland with Umeå in Sweden across the Gulf of Bothnia.
The two towns lie at a narrow point in the Gulf of Bothnia, with the Finnish and Swedish coasts around 80km apart. The route for the proposed Kvarken Bridge has yet to be identified. In total, the bridge would be around 40km in length, running from the group of islands forming the Kvarken Archipelago on the Finnish side to the somewhat smaller archipelago on the Swedish side.
Funding for the project would have to be secured from international sources for the project to be viable, with the cost likely to reach €1.5-2 billion. A portion of the funding would come from the Swedish and Finnish Governments. The idea of a bridge crossing at this part of the Gulf of Bothnia has been discussed for many years, although this latest proposal seems to have gone further than previous suggestions. Some have suggested that a longer bridge further to the south linking the Finnish city of Turku with Sweden's capital Stockholm via the numerous islands would offer a better transport alternative, albeit at a higher price.
Building a bridge would reduce transport times considerably between Vaasa and Umeå, which are at present linked by a ferry service. The road journey meanwhile is longer still, around the shores of the Gulf of Bothnia and involving a circuitous route to the north.
The waters of the gulf are comparatively shallow between Vaasa and Umeå, at around 25m, which would help ease some of the construction challenges often seen with bridges built as sea crossings. A raised section would also have to be constructed to allow safe passage for some of the larger vessels travelling along the Gulf of Bothnia. The bridge would also require protection along its length to eliminate the risk of impacts from out of control vessels.
A study into the project is being carried out for the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency, and should be ready by 2025.
