The planned repair of Pardubice's Míru Street returns to the city council

Pardubice - It hasn't been a month since the Pardubice city council approved the reconstruction of třída Míru and its transformation into a pedestrian zone. However, it now seems that everything will be different. The opposition at the Pardubice city hall has gathered 22 signatures from council members who want the issue to be brought back for discussion. It can be expected that public transport will at least partially remain operational on třída Míru. The city's mayor, Štěpánka Fraňková (Association for Pardubice), said this at a press conference today.
    "The ODS club has reached out to other council clubs, expressing a desire for the issue of třída Míru to return to the council, and because there were enough signatures from those who wanted the discussion to return to the council, třída Míru has been included as item number eight on the agenda of the meeting on January 24," Fraňková said.
    The problem lies mainly in whether bus and trolleybus traffic will be maintained on třída Míru after the reconstruction. According to the original resolution of the city council, they were not supposed to operate there, but it now seems that this will change and public transport will remain on třída Míru.
    "For me personally, this is a great disappointment. Three previous Pardubice councils have already approved třída Míru as a pedestrian area, and now there will be a vote for the fourth time. This is no longer democracy, especially considering that a petition for a pedestrian třída Míru was signed by 20,000 people some time ago," said Pardubice architect Milan Košař.
    The costs of the reconstruction are estimated at around 150 million crowns, with up to 85 percent expected to be covered by European grants. The city intends to repair Sladkovského street along with třída Míru. Construction is expected to start no earlier than the end of this year. To meet the conditions of the grant, the construction should be completed by the end of 2013.