The UNESCO advisory mission discussed the bridge under Vyšehrad in Prague

Prague - In recent days, Prague has been visited by an advisory mission from UNESCO to assess how the potential replacement of the railway bridge under Vyšehrad would affect the historical core of the capital. The information was confirmed today by Petr Hlaváček (for STAN), the deputy mayor of Prague, to the Czech News Agency (ČTK) on behalf of the Czech National Committee of the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ČNK ICOMOS). The replacement of the bridge with a new structure is being prepared by the state Railway Administration (SŽ), a plan that has met with resistance from local associations and authorities, who want to reconstruct the existing bridge.

The riveted bridge, dating from the early 20th century, is a monument and lies in an area listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site. According to sources from ČTK, the commissioners at the Center for Architecture and Urban Planning (CAMP) became acquainted with various proposals on how to address its deteriorating condition. The visit was arranged by SŽ at UNESCO's headquarters in Paris earlier this spring. Its spokesperson, David Kabele, stated today in response to ČTK's inquiry that the organization would not comment on the information at this time.

This year, SŽ began searching for a designer for the construction of a new three-track bridge between Prague 2 and 5, a design chosen years ago in an architectural competition. The foundation for the rescue of the Vyšehrad Railway Bridge presented to the UNESCO mission a new study by British, Swiss, and Czech bridge engineers on how to repair the bridge and potentially add a third track.

UNESCO representatives also received documentation on the development of the bridge's protection from ČNK ICOMOS. "The mission members listened to the arguments from all sides, both for the preservation of the bridge and for its removal. They did not comment on them, and the result will be known within a few months," stated Martin Horáček, the president of ČNK ICOMOS.

Minister of Transport Martin Kupka (ODS) previously stated regarding the dispute over the bridge that the final solution must respect both public interest in transportation and the interests of monument care. In addition to UNESCO's own opinion, a Heritage Impact Assessment (HIA) will also be created to evaluate the project's impact on historical heritage, similar to environmental impact assessments (EIA). None of the Czech projects have been subject to HIA so far, and the assessment will be carried out by an independent international authority.

This year, SŽ estimated the cost of building a new bridge at 3.4 billion crowns and stated that it expects to realize the project between 2027 and 2029. According to preliminary plans, the current heritage-protected structure should be moved upstream of the Vltava River between Modřany and Velká Chuchle, where it would continue to serve as a footbridge for pedestrians and cyclists. In contrast, according to the foundation's study, reconstruction with the construction of a separate structure for the third track would cost 2.5 billion crowns and should be faster.

"Additionally, it offers a lifespan of at least another 100 years. The technological process is completely standard and is used on dozens of bridges in the same or even worse condition around the world," said Jan Havlíček from the foundation today.

Horáček pointed out that previous UNESCO positions have favored the repair of the monument. "If UNESCO insists on preserving the bridge, we see no other option but to repair the bridge. Any other approach would not only violate Czech laws but could also result in Prague being listed as a city with endangered monuments," added the president of ČNK ICOMOS.

The commissioners could also be interested in other projects, such as modifications to Prague's main railway station or the construction of the Vltava Philharmonic.