Pedestrian and Cycle Bridge at the Kościuszko Barrage

The pedestrian and cycle bridge at the Kościuszko Barrage is a crossing of the Vistula alongside the A4 motorway, opened at the turn of February and March 2009. It is 285 metres long and 4.2 metres wide, and on both sides of the river it links well-used cycle routes of Kraków and the surrounding area.

Why it was built

Before 2009 pedestrians and cyclists used the technical walkways by the motorway bridge illegally, and after the renovation of the barrage these walkways were removed. The nearest legal crossings are 5 to 7 kilometres away: the Zwierzyniecki Bridge and the Kopanka - Jeziorzany ferry crossing. The footbridge therefore shortens the cycle route, especially towards Tyniec.

Construction

The barriers are over 1.5 metres high and shaped as arches curving inwards, so that handlebars do not catch on the railing. The footbridge is lit.

In the area

The nearest larger destination is the Benedictine Abbey in Tyniec, about a kilometre from the footbridge as the crow flies.

Practical information

• Location: the Vistula at the Kościuszko barrage, near Piekary.
• Access by bicycle along routes on both banks; at the time the source was written, the approaches to the abutments partly ran along dirt roads, so check the current state of the surface before you set out.