Activists are fighting for the declaration of the Červeňák Bridge as a cultural heritage site

Pardubice - Activists want to declare the Červeňák bridge in Pardubice as an industrial cultural monument. Their proposal will be assessed by the Ministry of Culture. The bridge is in a state of disrepair and has been inaccessible for a long time. The city council is allowing it to deteriorate and currently does not have a specific plan, ČTK found out.

The former military bridge has stood since 1935 in a natural area that once belonged to the army and is now owned by the city. Its red color has faded, and its riveted structure is rusted. According to activists, the bridge documents the development of bridge constructions at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries and deserves heritage protection.

"Unfortunately, the city has completely neglected the care of the bridge, even though the municipality is obliged to maintain its property and has been repeatedly reminded by the official bridge inspector of the need for repairs for years," Jaroslav Svoboda from the organization Protecting Trees told ČTK.

The Červeňák has been closed since 2018 due to poor structural integrity. According to an assessment commissioned by the city last year, its central span has zero load-bearing capacity. "The calculation proved that the neglect of repairs and corrosion of the bridge has reached such a level that the bridge is unfit for use and can barely support itself. Previous assessments still unnecessarily account for the operation of heavy vehicles, which were banned on the bridge 90 years ago. Our organization proposed to lighten the bridge by approximately 95 tons by replacing the heavy paving and concrete deck with a lightweight wooden one for pedestrians, thus making the bridge usable," Svoboda said.

However, Mayor Jan Nadrchal (ANO) recently stated that the bridge is likely beyond saving. The city could, however, issue an architectural study proposing a simple footbridge for pedestrians and cyclists, which would resemble the Červeňák, he said.

According to Deputy Mayor Jiřina Klčová (ANO), declaring the bridge a monument is not a happy solution. "The bridge is in such poor condition that once it becomes any kind of monument, its preservation will be more complicated. It would just sit there and deteriorate. For my part, it would be easier to build a replica next to it or try to conserve the bridge's condition and at least turn it into a pedestrian bridge," the deputy mayor told ČTK.

The request to declare the Červeňák a monument is being considered by the heritage office in Pardubice. "Our office has contacted the Methodological Center for Industrial Heritage in Ostrava regarding this matter and requested a consultation, based on which we will support the declaration as a cultural monument. The Ministry of Culture will subsequently decide, after receiving opinions from other relevant bodies, the city council, and the regional office, based on its own assessment, whether the bridge will be declared a cultural monument or not," said Zuzana Vlasáková, spokeswoman for the Pardubice branch of the National Heritage Institute.