Experts: The terrace at the exit from the Budějovická metro station does not need to be demolished

Prague - The terrace at the House of Residential Culture (DBK) at the exit from the Budějovická metro station in Prague 4 does not need to be demolished. It complies with construction standards, and the passage below the terrace can be immediately opened. This was stated today at a press conference by independent authorized civil engineer Marek Lukáš and the head of the Department of Steel and Wooden Structures at the Faculty of Civil Engineering CTU, František Wald. The southern vestibule with escalators towards DBK was closed by the Prague Public Transport Company in mid-January.

"The load-bearing structure of the terrace is not in a state of emergency, and it certainly does not need to be demolished. Even with some ongoing corrosion, it still complies with construction standards," stated Lukáš. According to František Wald from CTU, the building was oversized, and with proper maintenance, it will last for many more years.

According to an earlier statement by spokesman Vít Hofman, the magistrate has begun developing a demolition project for the passage. He claims that the structure is in poor condition and is irreparable. According to the chairman of the board of DBK, Miroslav Velfl, the experts' conclusions confirm that the municipal officials made a hasty and incorrect decision. "The closure of the entire space is taking an unreasonable amount of time and unreasonably complicates life for the residents of the capital and the entrepreneurs on Budějovická," said Velfl. According to him, 90,000 people pass through this location daily. Additionally, 45 entrepreneurs and companies from Budějovická sent a letter to Prague Mayor Adriana Krnáčová (ANO) urging her to address the issue without delay.

However, the magistrate rejects the conclusion of the new assessment. They claim that DBK is also to blame for its poor condition, as it previously appealed during the commentary process and hindered the magistrate's efforts to repair the passage.

"Our company is also concerned with maintaining maximum safety, but it is also about the comfort of the citizens. Although we were reluctant to do so, we respected the preventive measures. However, it turned out that they were adopted solely on the principle of precaution without a serious, thorough analysis," Velfl further stated. According to him, the magistrate acted "hastily" in light of the collapsed footbridge in Prague Troja, which collapsed in early December of last year. "We would have expected that Prague would immediately commission a current static assessment of the structure based on which further steps would be proposed. However, this has not happened," added Velfl.

Prague 4 is also demanding the opening of the passage. "It is completely impossible for the only one of the two metro exits that has escalators to remain closed, along with the adjacent part of the underpass," said the mayor of this district, Petr Štěpánek, today. He stated that the closure of the passage complicates access for people to the metro, buses, or the nearby polyclinic and town hall, and also harms the customers of the local shops. "The installed supports allow for the passage to be opened," added Jiří Bigas, spokesman for Prague 4.