Railway Viaduct in Wrocław

The railway viaduct in Wrocław is a chain of viaducts and spans carrying trains from Wrocław Główny station westward, along the so-called Municipal Connecting Railway (Miejska Kolej Łącząca). It was built between 1896 and 1901, as part of the reorganisation of the Wrocław railway junction, and to this day carries passenger traffic over the streets of the Powstańców Śląskich district.

How the viaduct is built

The whole structure is 620 metres long. It consists of 4 steel viaducts with spans of 20-25 metres and as many as 67 vaulted, brick-built spans of 5-6 metres each. Three tracks belonging to different railway lines run along the top, about 5 metres above the level of the surrounding streets.

Technical condition and train speed

The poor technical condition of the structure limited train speeds in places to 20-30 km/h for years. After a renovation carried out in 2009, trains can now travel along the viaduct at up to 60 km/h.

Nearby

It is a walk of less than a kilometre from here to Wrocław's Market Square.

Practical information

• Location: the Powstańców Śląskich district of Wrocław, near the city's strict centre.
• Getting there: the area around Wrocław Główny station and the city centre, from which the railway line runs over the streets; the viaduct is easiest to see from street level, passing under one of the viaducts.
• What to expect: a view of brick and steel railway spans, with no marked visiting route or viewing point.