Two lines crisscrossing directly across the river

Two tram lines will run across the new bridge, creating a new connection between parts of the city that were not previously directly linked. Line 20, departing from Dědina via Malá Strana and Smíchov, will no longer go up to Barrandov but will reach the right bank of the Vltava via the six spans of the Dvorecký Bridge. From Dvorce, it will then continue to Modřany and back again. Meanwhile, travel options from Barrandov and Slivenec will expand thanks to the modified route of line 21. This line will connect this large housing estate with Podolí, Výtoň, the I.P. Pavlova metro station, Náměstí Míru, and Vršovice. In practice, this will create a new “cross-river” connection without the need to detour through the city center.

The new tracks will also help during longer-term closures and are crucial during emergencies. The two long routes to Slivenec and Libuš will be easier to serve even when, for example, a trolley wire breaks. This happens quite often, typically when an oversized truck ignores a traffic sign and drives under the bridge at Výtoň.

Travel time between Lihovar and Dvorce will be cut in half

The bridge faces the most criticism due to the ban on passenger cars. However, if we allowed cars on the bridge, we would mainly cause gridlock in the surrounding streets of Prague 4, because some vehicles would choose to drive through the residential area instead of taking the Jižní spojka. Residents of Jeremenkova Street would have to endure thousands of new vehicles, and additional turning lanes would need to be built on both approaches—but there isn’t much space for them here. Drivers, however, will also see a clear benefit, as hundreds of buses will disappear from the Barrandov Bridge every day.

Bus passengers will travel more comfortably. This will be most noticeable on the route between Smíchov and Budějovická, which will be shortened by about three minutes—not counting the occasional long traffic jams on the Barrandov Bridge. It is precisely these jams that some bus routes will now avoid. Lines 118, 124, 196, and 197 will run across the Dvorecký Bridge, and at night, lines 901 and 914. This means one thing: fewer delays and more reliable service, for example, toward Brumlovka or the Novodvorská housing estate. In addition, a new stop called Dvorce will be established near the bridge, and the original stop will be renamed Dvorecké náměstí.

Be aware of the changes, even if you’re not crossing the Vltava

The bridge will also affect other lines that aren’t directly related to it. In a complex network, it’s not simply a matter of adding new routes while leaving the rest as passengers are accustomed to. Crowded tracks in the city center don’t allow for that; in some places, trams would run empty, and in others, they wouldn’t even make it through the intersection. When planning new lines across the Dvorecký Bridge, it’s also necessary to take into account the length of the green light at the intersection across the expressway five kilometers away. On busy sections in the city center, the plan also relies on several lines helping each other out. It’s not ideal for them to run right one after the other, but rather so that you can board an arriving tram every two or three minutes. This helps spread out the largest crowds of people traveling short distances in the city center.

So be careful, for example, in Radlice, where line 4 will now run. In Barrandov, it will be replaced by line 15, which will be replaced on the route to Kotlářka by line 7 from Lehovec. Sometimes slightly complicated changes are necessary, for instance, to ensure there are enough trams on Plzeňská Street when the key line 9 stops in the congested city center. For a while, we also won’t see line 14 on the streets of Prague, as it will return with the opening of tracks on Wenceslas Square on a completely new route. A fast connection between Holešovice and the city center will be provided by the new, short route of line 34.

It’s not just about the bridge. Its surroundings are changing too

The bridge is not just a new transportation link. Along with it, the space on both banks will also be transformed in the coming months. The authors have done everything possible to ensure that the paths under the bridge do not become an unpleasant place; on the contrary, it is intended to be a space where it makes sense to stop. Sculptures and light installations by Krištof Kintera, as well as modifications by Atelier 6, are designed to help achieve this.

A café will be built under the bridge at Lihovar, complete with public restrooms and stairs leading down to the river for swimmers. The entrance to the Žluté lázně complex is also set to be transformed. Thanks to the fact that you can now cross the Vltava River on foot or by tram, the ferry hasn’t even operated this year.

In the future, by tram all the way to Budějovická

Several tram lines have opened in Prague in recent years, such as those to Dědina or Slivenec. The tram boom will continue in the coming years. The opening of the Dvorecký Bridge will be followed by additional sections that will improve travel in the wider center of Prague without requiring people to squeeze into the most hectic areas in the very heart of the city. Public transportation in the Czech capital has so far mainly directed traffic there, which is why the city is building so-called tangential connections. In the future, additional tram tracks should run from Dvorce up to Budějovická, taking you to places like Pankrác or Michle.