Very far bridge? The Prague Railway project draws criticism

The Czech capital Prague is one of the architectural gemstones in Europe: it has not been largely touched by ten centuries of invasion and war, as it attracts about 8 million tourists annually.

It is a living panel of architectural styles. From the Middle Ages to Baroque, from industrial to modern. So when a Prague teacher is determined to demolish or reconstruction, it always raises strong feelings.

“I think this bridge is completely key to Brag,” said the architect and the bridge engineer, Peter Tig, running his hand on the rust -covered symptoms of the 123 -year -old Veshrad Railways Bridge.

“The panorama is formed in conjunction with the Castle of Vysehrad behind it at the same level as the Charles Separation of Charles with the Prague Castle. These panorama – in my opinion – is crucial for Prague, and we need to maintain it.”

We stand on the pedestrian corridor running next to the rusty steel bridge. We have stare in the trio of brackets that have become a creative feature in the southern Prague horizon.

While we talked about a train that was directed west over the river, heading to the Prague Smachov Station, and from there to Carlopi different, Pilsen or Germany.

“These bits here are the most influential of rust,” Peter told me, pointing to the nest of the joints and symptoms.

Peter is part of the Vysehrad Bridge Foundation, an international alliance of experts who have recovered similar steel around the world – some of them are much worse than this.

They say that the railway plan to dismantle this iconic industrial teacher – which was built in 1902 during the peak of the Austrian Hungarian Empire – is completely unnecessary.

“Previous expert reports stated that 70 % of the steel must be replaced. Our study says it is only 15 %. It is a big difference.”

The Foundation’s suggestion is simple: repairing the bridge in its place, preserving the trains operating, reducing the turmoil, and providing money in this process.

Earlier this year, their findings were supported by UNESCO, which protects many of the historical center of Brag. It is also supported by more than 25,000 residents who fell on a petition demanding the restoration of the Vysehrad Bridge instead of replacing it.

Soon, in light of the metal symptoms, the Director of the Building Department of the Railways Authority, Pavel, shook his head in a dispute.

“This bridge already deals with about three quarters of Prague railway movement. It can deal more, but due to corrosion, it can only carry about 60 % of its energy,” Bayar told the BBC.

“With the expected growth in railway travel, this will be a major problem in the field of transport. Yes, it is a protected historical monument, but it is increasingly clear that it is not possible to simply reconcile these two things – transportation needs and heritage preservation.”

The new bridge will include a third path, and according to perceptions, it will be a fair honor of the original. The entire region will be activated, and transport links will be improved from the main Prague station to the west of the country and beyond.

Meanwhile, the old bridge will be dismantled and transported about 8 km (5 miles) south to the Modrany area, to start a new life as a pedestrian crossing and bikers.

However, this idea was also criticized by activists. The Ftava River in Modrany is about half as in the city center. They say that the urban rail bridge will look completely out of the place in the middle of the meadow.

“There is a wrong perception that there is a conflicting interest in playing here-the transfer and protection of our cultural heritage,” said Thisehrad Bridge, who suggests a secondary bridge alongside the third track.

“But our study shows that there is no conflict at all; on the contrary, these two things support each other.”

It is an old dilemma: demolished in the name of modernity, or maintaining the name of the tradition. It raises particularly strong feelings in a city that is proud of its architectural preservation.

Ultimately, maybe sooner and not later, it will have to be determined by railway engineers or heritage activists, but by the Czech government.