The decision to implement the Äänekoski railway project was made in the spring of 2016. The Finnish Transport Agency made a decision to launch the implementation stage of the project on 26 April 2016. The decision was based on a financial grant of EUR 80 million and a target cost of EUR 63.63 million confirmed by the alliance at the development stage. The target cost included the alliance’s risks and opportunities as well as the client’s purchases, but the scope of the project differed to a degree from the original. Although the scope of the project was mostly based on the original project concept, some works were left out due to the limited budget, in addition to which new critical works (such as EUR 2 million for a bridge in Vihtiälä) were identified during the development stage which it made sense to carry out in connection with the project. The Finnish Transport Agency consequently applied for EUR 10 million more funding at the end of the development stage, which was granted towards the end of 2016. Thanks to the additional funding, the project budget increased to EUR 90 million, and the target cost was raised correspondingly to EUR 72.41 million. Most of the works in lot 1, which had been left out of the plans during the development stage, could therefore be reincluded in the project. The project’s final target cost stood at EUR 74.56 million at the end of the construction stage, which was approximately EUR 2.15 million above the target. The final budget forecast was EUR 91.5 million at the end of the construction stage.