Österleden, Stockholm

Österleden (the East Route) was a planned motorway in Stockholm, Sweden.[1] The road was intended to run on the east side of the Stockholm City Centre and link the Norra länken and Södra länken motorways to create a completed Stockholm ring road.

As of 2007 the road project had undergone a feasibility study, and was awaiting feedback from the County Administrative Board of Stockholm.[1]

In January 2008 Kristina Axén Olin, the Mayor of Stockholm, said that the political majority in Stockholm Municipality was in favour of constructing the road, but according to the plan with the Swedish Road Administration, the construction start would not occur until 2020 and completion in 2030.[2]

In 2018, the Österleden plan was discontinued, as it is no longer included in the national plan.[3] A further report from the Swedish Transport Administration stated that show that the Eastern connection would not contribute to meeting the environmental goals or the goal of increased public transport usage in Stockholm. Its construction would mean that none of Stockholm's goals of reduced climate impact, improved air quality or improved living environment would be possible to achieve.[4]

## History

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Architect model 1948 for Österbron (the East Bridge) by the German consulting firm Fritsch & Co, Heidelberg

Plans on a road connection using a bridge east of the city centre were part of the early regional plans, and city general plans in 1928 and 1960.[5]

A motorway in a tunnel east of the city centre was one of the road projects of the Dennis Agreement from 1992, a political agreement for road construction in the Stockholm area. Österleden was to be the eastern part of a ring road around central Stockholm. The planning of the road was cancelled in 1997 when the agreement was broken.[1][5][6]

## Studied alignments

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The feasibility study contains three suggested alignments of the road:[5]

* Alternative C
* New tunnel beneath the Stockholm City Centre west of Southern Djurgården
* Estimated cost: 12-15 billion SEK
* Alternative D
* New tunnel with approximately the same alignment as in the early 1990s plans, beneath Saltsjön and Djurgården
* Estimated cost: 9-12 billion SEK
* Alternative F
* New tunnel between Nacka and Lidingö
* Estimated cost: 10-15 billion SEK

## References

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1. ^ a b c "Östlig förbindelse". Swedish Road Administration. 17 October 2006. Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 15 August 2007.
2. ^ "Stökigt i Stockholm många år framöver". Dagens Nyheter. 6 January 2008. Retrieved 7 January 2008.
3. ^ "Östlig förbindelse". www.trafikverket.se (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 9 October 2019. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
4. ^ POSTEN, NACKA VÄRMDÖ. ""Därför kan vi inte bygga Östlig förbindelse" - NVP.se - Nacka Värmdö Posten på nätet". www.nvp.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 17 May 2021.
5. ^ a b c Markstedt, Anders; Faith-Ell, Charlotta; Ingo, Susanne; Fors, Peter (25 April 2006). "Förstudie Östlig förbindelse". Swedish Road Administration, Region Stockholm. Archived from the original on 14 October 2007. Retrieved 15 August 2007. `{{cite journal}}`: Cite journal requires `|journal=` (help)
6. ^ Malmsten, Bo; Persson, Magnus (2000). Dennispaketet – låsningar och lösningar. Regionplane- och trafikkontoret, Stockholms läns landsting. ISBN 91-86574-55-8. Retrieved 15 August 2007.