Footbridge on Szybka Street

The footbridge on Szybka Street is a pedestrian crossing over the Oława river in Wrocław, in the area of the Rakowiec estate, close to the Grunwaldzki Bridge.

From a wooden structure to reinforced concrete

The first footbridge on this site was built in the 1920s and was made of wood - a five-span structure resting on wooden pylons with spurs, with beams stiffened by tie rods under the deck. It served a dual function: it was used by pedestrians while also carrying two water pipelines running across the river. Fragments of the concrete piers that once supported the old pylons still lie in the bed of the Oława today.

The 1994 reconstruction

In 1994 the old wooden footbridge was demolished and a new crossing was built on the same site, this time a single-span structure resting on reinforced-concrete abutments. The load-bearing structure consists of steel box-section girders, covered with an asphalt surface, while the abutments and approaches were paved with concrete blocks. Like its predecessor, the footbridge still carries a suspended water main - on the right bank of the river, by the Na Grobli water treatment plant.

Dimensions and purpose

The present-day footbridge is 52 metres long and 4.23 metres in total width, of which 3.74 metres is taken up by the deck itself. It is not open to vehicle traffic - it is used only by pedestrians and cyclists.

Nearby

The footbridge is close to the historic part of the city: within a radius of one and a half kilometres lie the Racławice Panorama and the National Museum in Wrocław, and over the Oder the Tumski Bridge.

Practical information

• Location: Szybka Street over the Oława river, Rakowiec estate, Wrocław
• The crossing is open to pedestrians and cyclists, with no vehicle traffic
• A convenient point for a walk along the Oława towards the city centre