The provisional repairs of the Libeň Bridge are set to begin this Friday

Prague - Work on the temporary security of the closed Libeň Bridge will begin this Friday. This is planned by the city company Technical Administration of Communications (TSK), which is currently selecting a construction firm. The manager of Prague's communications estimates that the repairs will take three to, at most, four weeks. TSK announced this today in a press release. Due to the emergency condition, the traffic of cars and trams over the Libeň Bridge was stopped last Friday.

Regarding the contract for supporting one of the bridges in the Libeň conjunction, TSK contacted five companies. The deadline for submitting bids expires on Friday at 10:00 AM. “Then we will immediately evaluate them, sign a contract, and we will want to hand over the construction site to the contractor on Friday so that they can start working immediately,” said TSK director Petr Smolka. The selected construction company must guarantee that the bridge will meet the conditions after the repair, allowing for resumed operation on the bridge at least to some extent.

The Libeň Bridge was reclassified last week into the category of bridges in emergency condition. The Technical Administration of Communications and the leadership of Prague have banned the entry of vehicles over five tons and also stopped public transport operations. It is unclear how long the bridge will remain closed. It is also unclear when the bridge, built in 1928, will be definitively repaired.

In the past, TSK prepared for the demolition of the bridge and the construction of a new one. The representatives rejected this in 2016 and chose the option of reconstruction. Now the city is waiting for a decision from the Ministry of Culture on whether the bridge is a monument, and thus it cannot start the reconstruction.

The Ministry of Culture claims that necessary maintenance and construction or technical interventions aimed at stabilizing the Libeň Bridge can be carried out even during the assessment of its possible heritage protection. “The Libeň Bridge is in poor technical condition due to the long-term absence of adequate maintenance lasting for decades, and the proceedings for declaring the matter a cultural monument have no effect on this state,” said the ministry's spokesperson on Friday. Moreover, only part of the Libeň conjunction on the bank towards Palmovka is in emergency condition, not the bridge itself over the Vltava.