Hradec Králové city hall wants to build a new footbridge over the Elbe still this year

Hradec Králové - The leadership of the Hradec Králové city hall plans to construct a footbridge over the Elbe near the Aldis Congress Center by the end of this year. The city council still needs to decide on announcing a competition for the construction company that will ensure the new bridge over the Elbe. Petr Vinklář, the spokesperson for the city hall, told ČTK today. The estimated cost of building the bridge is around 48 million crowns, most of which should be covered by a European grant. Construction could start in the spring.

"The final price will be determined by the competition. The construction of the bridge should take a maximum of eight months. It is therefore realistic that the bridge could be completed this year," Vinklář told ČTK.

The bridge will be for pedestrians and cyclists, connecting Šimkovy Sady and the area of the Aldis Congress Center with Karl IV Avenue in the city center. The city also committed to the construction of the bridge in an agreement with Československá obchodní banka, which has begun constructing a regional headquarters for a thousand employees in the Aldis zone. The city hall constructed a pedestrian boulevard in the Aldis zone in 2003 for 23 million crowns, which the bridge was supposed to connect to.

The city has been preparing the footbridge project since 2003. Environmentalists had objections to the project. The original plan included the cutting down of one oak tree on the embankment, against which environmentalists successfully protested. Delays and disputes also surrounded the architectural competition. Ornithologists raised objections to the design of the bridge, as the proposed bridge could interfere with the flight paths of birds, especially swans. The project was modified due to the comments from ecologists.