Kulkusuunta

Kulkusuunta is a term used in Finnish traffic planning and pedestrian management to denote the direction of movement of traffic or people on a given route or location. The word combines kulku, meaning movement or passage, with suunta, direction. In official documents, kulkusuunta is used to describe the primary travel direction on a street segment, intersection approach, or pedestrian corridor, and to distinguish between opposing flows in analyses and designs.

In practice, kulkusuunta informs the layout of signage, signals, and crosswalk timings. Urban planners examine observed kulkusuunta to determine whether a street should be designated as one-way or whether dedicated pedestrian or bicycle flows are needed. Mapping and sensor data often include kulkusuunta annotations to reflect prevailing directions, while bidirectional facilities may record separate kulkussuuntia for each direction. The concept also supports modeling of traffic and pedestrian dynamics, helping to simulate how changes in lane allocations or signal timing affect travel efficiency and safety.

Outside of Finland, the term is generally described as the concept equivalent to direction of travel or traffic flow. It is primarily used in engineering and transport planning contexts and may appear in municipal reports, transport planning studies, and digital map metadata. See also: traffic direction, traffic flow, wayfinding, crosswalk timing.