Three key questions on the intersection remain: Roundabout redesign, shifting public transport lanes to the middle of Endla tänav, one of the major thoroughfares leading up to the junction, and rerouting services to nearby Madara tänav.

While the incoming Center Party-Isamaa Tallinn coalition has abandoned building a tram line along Liivalaia, to the east of Kristiine, the Kristiine intersection work is still going ahead as things stand.

Current deputy mayor for transport, Kristjan Järvan (Isamaa), told ERR that even without the tramline, it makes sense to reorganize the junction. The existing five-armed intersection is highly problematic in terms of traffic accidents, he noted.

The new aim is to create a functioning public transport hub at the Kristiine junction and, in the first phase, bring together all stops for public transport services heading out of the city. At present, those bus stops are scattered across three of the main streets which make up the intersection: Endla, Sõpruse puiestee and Tulika tänav.

The integrated stop would be located in front of Kristiine Keskus shopping mall under the current plans.

"This is the minimum program that absolutely has to be carried out, and I believe we will move forward with it," Järvan said.

This public transport stops work is eligible for EU support. However, under EU rules the funds must be used by the end of 2029, putting the city under a strict timetable.

Toomas Haidak, head of development and planning at the Tallinn environment and public works department, said the hope is in the first quarter of 2026 to determine more precisely how the Kristiine Keskus public transport stops project will be carried through.

By then it should also be clear whether public transport will be placed in the middle of Endla, and whether there will be a roundabout or not, he added.

"There is not much time to think. We must keep to a fairly strict schedule, and this means getting an answer in the first quarter would be highly recommended," he noted.

This means the first and visually largest change concerns the shape of the junction.

"The concern is that if there is an accident on a roundabout, it is significantly more sensitive to such incidents," Järvan noted, though he still favors having such a setup.

Haidak said at the moment both the roundabout and a "classic" junction option are being equally weighed up. The former design generally fits better in more outlying and suburban areas, where there is more space, he said. The Kristiine mall however lies right on the boundary between the more densely built up City Center (Kesklinn) district and the suburban Kristiine and beyond, to the west, making the choice a difficult one.

Deputy mayor: Roundabout most sensible option according to departments

Outgoing deputy mayor for urban planning Madle Lippus (SDE) meanwhile said that, so far, a roundabout would be the most sensible solution in terms of traffic flow, according to analysis. This would also allow a tram to make a turnaround if needed.

"In taking all the preconditions into account, the departments — planning, environment and public works, and transport — have together found that a roundabout would be the most sensible and optimal solution there," Lippus said.

Local residents at a recent town hall on the design issues called for long-term solution, adding the intersection should not need reconstruction again in the coming years.

Once the new city government, likely to be installed this week, is in office, things should become clearer, Järvan said. He added the Kristiine junction could potentially be turned into a multi-level junction even without major reconstruction, via a tunnel.

Haidak said this idea has not been considered or analysed as a realistic option so far.

Draft design conditions also currently take tram into account

As for the integrated public transport stops, according to Haidak, placing these in the center of the street would have a knock-on effect on other decisions. "If public transport is placed in the middle of the street, that would require a completely different solution at the junction," he said.

The tram line and its overhead cabling are not to be built for the time being. The published draft design conditions still allow for tram tracks in the future, however, meaning the street corridor should be arranged so that a tram line could potentially fit there in the future without major demolition work.

"If the decision is that regular public transport — buses and trolleybuses — will go in the middle of the street, then that already provides to some extent the basis for running tram traffic there in the future if desired," Haidak said.

The draft design conditions have been sent out for public consultation, but the city government has not yet formally adopted them.

Buses and trolleybuses to Tulika or Madara streets?

The third aspect is dispersing traffic heading toward North Tallinn. One option under consideration is to redirect part of public transport to Madara, mostly consisting of commercial buildings but earmarked for more residential development, instead of over-burdening Tulika tänav.

Järvan was cautious about this. "When anyone wants to get to Madara tänav, where future urban planning foresees new residential areas, then certainly those new public transport corridors would make sense. But completely pulling public transport out of one corridor and directing it only into that new corridor is likely not rational," Järvan argued.

Lippus said that, so far, planners working on the Kristiine junction have found it reasonable to direct public transport either fully or partly to Madara. Without this, the Kristiine junction would have more issues with convenient public transport, she said.

Haidak said this question can also be left to the consultant during the design process, and can be deferred beyond spring 2026.

Moving the train stop lies further down the line

As for discussions on relocating the nearby Lilleküla rail stop closer to the junction, this is likely a plan for later on.

Kaido Aettik, infrastructure director at Estonian Railways (Eesti Raudtee), said the City of Tallinn has not yet provided any concrete plans on that. Once it does, the railtrack provider can analyse the cost and other aspects of moving the halt.

Access routes would need to be considered, as well as the track's capacity, Aettik said. "Whether additional tracks will be needed depends on where the stopping points and pedestrian access are planned for. To avoid creating a bottleneck, the entire movement scheme needs to be thought through," he said.

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