The urban density in two Nordic capitals – comparing the development of Oslo and Helsinki metropolitan regions

Maija Tiitu,Petter Naess,Mika Ristimäki

doi:10.1080/09654313.2020.1817865

Maija Tiitu, Petter Naess + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2020.1817865

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Abstract

ABSTRACT Situated in northern Europe, the capital regions of Helsinki, and Oslo have many similar premises concerning urban development. However, the structure of the two regions differs by many measures. We explore the differences in urban density and its development in the both regions and the policy instruments that have affected them. Differences are identified by comparing the population densities of urban settlements and the mean distances from residents and workplaces to the city centres of Oslo and Helsinki using GIS methodology and existing literature. In the Oslo region, the population density shifted from a decreasing trend to an increasing one in the late 1980s. In contrast, the Helsinki region only started to densify in the 2010s. Also, the mean distance of residents and workplaces from the city centre is farther in Helsinki. The long period of low-density housing development and the creation of jobs outside centres in Helsinki is related to weaker political steering towards a compact urban form. In Oslo, regulations such as a greenbelt policy but also physical factors, led to densification relatively early. Lagging in densification policies, Helsinki could learn from the experiences of steering land use and mobility in Oslo, which would need additional research.

Highlights

In the twentieth century, and especially after World War II, urban development in most European cities was dominated by outward expansion
In many parts of Europe outward expansion has increasingly been combined with densification within existing built-up areas (OECD 2012), and in some countries densification has become the predominant form of urban development
We found that the density values of the settlements demarcated by the Norwegian methodology were very much in line with the density values of the Finnish densely built locality settlements (2)

Summary

Introduction

Especially after World War II, urban development in most European cities was dominated by outward expansion. In some parts of Europe this is still the case (Guastella, Queslati, and Pareglio 2019; Mustafa and Teller 2020), and as late as 2006 the European Environmental Agency characterized urban sprawl in Europe as ‘the ignored challenge’ (EEA 2006). In many parts of Europe outward expansion has increasingly been combined with densification within existing built-up areas (OECD 2012), and in some countries (notably in Norway and Sweden) densification has become the predominant form of urban development. Construction of new dwellings and offices in former industrial and harbour areas vacated due to global relocation processes has been an important part of the new densification trend. The densification of inner-city areas in Finnish cities, only began much more recently.

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