Railway Square

On the south side of Railway Square is busy Kaivokatu, running from Mannerheimintie in the southwest to Kaisaniemenkatu in the northeast. On the east side of the railway station is Railway Square, departure point for many of the local buses and scene of various events. West of the station is Elielinaukio (Eliel Square), likewise a local bus terminus.

The sturdy station building was designed by Eliel Saarinen (1873-1950) and dates from the late 1910s. Watching over the main entrance on Kaivokatu are two lantern-bearers. Beneath the station is a metro station and shopping centre.

On the northern side of the square is the red-roofed Finnish National Theatre (1902) in National-Romantic style, and in front of it a statue (1939) of Finland's national writer, Aleksis Kivi (1834-72). Opposite the Theatre, on Kaivokatu, is the Neo-Classical Museum of Finnish Art, the Ateneum (1887).

Opposite the Railway Station, on the corner of Kaivokatu and Keskuskatu, is the "Sausage Block" designed by Viljo Revell and Heikki Castrén in the 1960s. Unfortunately, the drawings got mixed up and the railing round the parking level is 40 cm thicker than it should be.

The hand railings of the Kaivokatu subway entrances inspired Jan Vuorenlaakso to create a pink work of art.