Warsaw Bridges

Warsaw Bridges are a group of five crossings in the northern part of Wrocław, carrying a street towards the former route to Oleśnica and on to Warsaw. Three older bridges and two new ones span the Oder, the Old Oder, the Municipal Canal and the navigation canal, and a two-way carriageway with a double-track tram line runs their entire length.

Five bridges instead of one

The group of older bridges consists of a single-span western bridge over the Municipal Canal, a five-span central bridge over the Old Oder, and an eastern bridge over the Navigation Canal. The central bridge was built between 1914 and 1916 as a reinforced concrete structure with an arched slab. Two new bridges were added to the group, erected between 2006 and 2008 parallel to the old ones: a six-span bridge over the main river current and the Navigation Canal, and a single-span western bridge over the Municipal Canal.

A crossing since historical times

A crossing over the Oder has existed at this spot for a long time, leading from the city through Psie Pole in a north-westerly direction. Until the 1860s, before the canals were built, a wooden bridge stood here. In 1870 it was replaced by a four-span steel structure resting on stone piers. When the Wrocław waterway was rebuilt at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, two further bridges had to be added and the existing one rebuilt. In 1897 a steel truss bridge was built over the newly dug Municipal navigation canal, almost identical to the Trzebnicki Bridge on the other side of the city.

The bridge that was moved to another river

In 1927-1928 one of the western bridges was dismantled and moved to the river Oława, where it still functions today as the Rakowiecki Bridge. A new reinforced concrete frame bridge was built in its former place, which is today's Warszawski Zachodni Bridge.

A refurbishment from twenty years ago

In June 2006, modernisation of the crossing began: two new road and tram bridges were built alongside the old ones, and the old ones were refurbished. In May 2008 the new bridges passed load tests and one of the carriageways was opened to traffic, after which work began on refurbishing and adapting the old structures. The access route then gained two lanes in each direction and a separate tram track.

Practical information

• Location: over the Oder, the Old Oder, the Municipal Canal and the navigation canal in the northern part of Wrocław, in the area of the Karłowice-Różanka district.
• Getting there: a carriageway with a tram line runs across the bridge, so it is worth checking the current public transport timetable before a visit.
• What to expect: a view of the branching of the Oder and five different bridge structures next to one another, including one from the period before the First World War.
• Nearby it is worth visiting the Botanical Garden of the University of Wrocław, Tumski Bridge and Szczytnicki Park.