On 25 June, the City of Krakow signed an agreement with PKP Polskie Linie Kolejowe regarding the lease of land under the railway crossing in central Krakow. It is roughly the size of three football fields. According to the report of public consultations with residents and arrangements with PKP PLK, in the place of the old railway embankments, there will be pedestrian and bicycle routes, plenty of green spaces and places for rest and recreation for people of all ages.
In the center of Krakow, the railway bridge was replaced in the 19th century by two flyovers with a total length of 700 meters, which would accommodate additional railway tracks and a new station in Kraków Grzegórzki, where the agglomeration’s trains would stop. Under the tracks, between the columns of the new structures, a new free space of 20,000 square meters was created.
– The lease agreement pertains to the first section of this area along Bleich Street from the Mujahideen. Copernicus to Grzegórzecka. Thanks to this, we will be able to develop it in the form of a green recreation area, as the residents wanted it in the consultations. We already have a development concept, and now we will focus on all arrangements, including preservation. Fieldwork will start next year – the mayor of Krakow announces يعلن Jacek Majchrowski.
This is one of the first agreements of this kind that assumes a multi-layered division of usable space. The agreement will be effective from 1 July for a period of 10 years. During this time, the city will be obligated to arrange and maintain the area under the railway facilities. Subsequent parts of it will be presented by PLK in phases, along with the progress of construction work.
– The contract signed today proves that railway investments are not only reducing travel time, increasing travel comfort and combating the exclusion of transport, but also a beneficial change for the residents of Krakow, who will get an attractive place to spend their leisure – the Minister of Infrastructure emphasized Andrzej Adamczyk.
The construction of the agglomeration line and related filtering of the railway embankments that constitute a communication and spatial barrier between the Old Town and Grzegórzki will fundamentally change the urban, architectural, communicative and social relations in Krakow.
The conceptual design of the development of this area is in response to the residents’ needs to create a friendly yet multifunctional public space in the heart of Krakow.
The main premise of the project is the creation of a new green public space – the railway park. The project ensures the continuity of pedestrian and bicycle links along the railway investment. In accordance with the will of the residents, expressed during public consultations, the park was divided into functional areas, while preserving the maximum share of green spaces. The way the land is developed varies depending on the existing spatial and architectural factors, such as the height of the columns, the width of the flyover, or the immediate vicinity.
In addition, the project includes the creation of an educational track on the history of the development of railway transport in Poland along with the identification of fees, which is also a form of making the monochromatic surface and concrete elements of the flyover more attractive.
“Music specialist. Pop culture trailblazer. Problem solver. Internet advocate.”
