Nymburk has closed the area under the closed footbridge, its collapse is imminent

photo: ŠJů, Wikimedia Commons

Nymburk - Nymburk has closed the areas under the footbridge across the Elbe, which was shut down last December for safety reasons. The footbridge has the same design and is by the same designer as the footbridge in Prague-Troja, which collapsed into the Vltava last December. Technicians from the Klokner Institute have not confirmed the complete safety of the Nymburk footbridge, and it may also unexpectedly collapse. Petr Černohous, spokesperson for the Nymburk City Hall, said this today.

Experts from the Klokner Institute have been examining the Nymburk footbridge since May 2. "From the preliminary conclusions, it is clear that the stability, and thus the safety of the structure cannot be predicted in its current state, and an unpredictable collapse may occur. Therefore, the city leadership reacted to this situation and closed the area under the footbridge," said Černohous.

Nymburk has thus closed the parking lot under Eliška, restricting access to part of the bike path. The city consulted the closure of the areas with the police, firefighters, and the Elbe River Authority. The closed area under the footbridge also affects the access to the riverside police station, which will now likely have to pass through the grounds of the neighboring elementary school.

The city has also begun preparations for the demolition of the footbridge. "A request for proposals will be initiated for the contractor of the project documentation, and the first issue to address will be the method of removing the footbridge. A possible demolition and subsequent extraction of the entire structure from the river are under consideration; other options would likely be very problematic and costly," said Deputy Mayor Jan Ritter (Nymburk Democrats).

The Nymburk leadership plans to present a proposal at the June council meeting to announce an architectural competition for the construction of a new footbridge. Selected design firms are to be invited to participate in the architectural competition. Their proposals will likely be assessed by an expert jury in September. The best proposal would be tasked with developing the project documentation for the construction of the footbridge.

People now have to use the railway bridge or the hydroelectric plant to cross the Elbe instead of the closed footbridge, which adds more than a kilometer to their journey. Adjacent to the closed footbridge is a car bridge, but for safety reasons, pedestrian passage cannot be allowed. Since January 15, the city has also introduced free bus transport between the Přemyslovců Square and Zálabí, which is on the other side of the river. People can ride the bus for free between the Nymburk, Zálabí PVT, and Nymburk Náměstí stops. During the day, there are about 45 trips in each direction, making a total of 90 free connections.