Hradec Králové will repair the monument-protected Prague Bridge, construction will limit traffic

Hradec Králové - The listed Prague Bridge over the Elbe in the center of Hradec Králové is scheduled for maintenance and repair from mid-March to the end of July at a cost of approximately six million crowns excluding tax. The construction will partially restrict traffic on the bridge. This was announced today by city hall spokesperson Kateřina Rohlíčková. The single-arch Art Nouveau iron Prague Bridge, designed by architect Jan Kotěra, was opened in July 1910. It replaced a stone fortress bridge.

Builders on the busy bridge, which is one of the city's typical structures, will restore the anti-corrosion protection of the structure and railing. New bird protection nets will be installed in the lower part of the bridge, and the sidewalks on the bridge will be repaired. Between 2014 and 2023, the city hall gradually repaired four Art Nouveau kiosks located at the edges of the bridge. The bridge underwent a major renovation between 1992 and 1993.

Preparation work for the maintenance of the bridge is expected to last from the beginning of next week to the end of March without restricting traffic. After that, passage will be possible on one side for public transport vehicles and emergency services. For pedestrians, only half of the bridge will be open at all times.

"A solution is being sought for private cars. As with public transport, only partial traffic restrictions on one side of the bridge are being considered," the city hall stated. In mid-August, the main route of the international Ironman triathlon race will lead around the bridge.

"We are trying to ensure that at least one bridge undergoes construction work every year. In 2022, it was the Moravian Bridge near the winter stadium, which also underwent necessary maintenance at a similar time," said the director of Technical Services Hradec Králové Tomáš Pospíšil.

For the listed Moravian Bridge from 1914, the city hall spent 24 million crowns to restore the surface of the roadway and sidewalks, repair the bridge anchors, and the cast iron railing received an anti-corrosion coating. In the lower part of the bridge, which crosses the Orlice, bird nets were added.