Green Malovanka – A Solution for the Highway Interchange in the City Center

We started working on the project solution for the Malovanka intersection for the Urban Interventions 2010 (http://www.mestskezasahy.cz/).
The purpose of our work was to highlight a fundamental problem in the city's structure and suggest possible solutions.
At the request of the Prague 6 district, we further developed the proposal in the form of a verification study in 08/2010.
This study was developed based on further instructions from Prague 6 in two variants in 11/2011.
The results of the last design phase are attached.
Currently, both versions are being assessed in terms of their impact on the environment.

The intersection as an open wound harms the city. It interrupts a belt of public parks that stretches from the walls, through Hládkov, to the gardens of the Malovanka estate and the Kajetánka chateau. It has become a physical and psychological barrier for pedestrians, cyclists, and local residents.
The Blanka tunnel, following a controversial route, is a typical example of the arbitrariness of transportation construction in Prague. Its above-ground outlet and grade-separated intersections are created without public debate or architectural competition. The Malovanka intersection, which is being completed at the junction of the Blanka tunnel and the Strahov tunnel, resembles an outskirt of the city. Yet its extensive area, covered with bundles of transport corridors at various heights, spreads just beyond the walls of historic Prague.
The design connects the "banks" of the intersection with a pair of crossed footbridges. The Network variant overlays the intersection space with a stainless steel mesh covered with climbing plants. The Labyrinth variant transforms the intersection space with overgrown structures into the form of a French garden.
Both versions reduce noise and dust in the vicinity of the intersection.