Kalachnyk: Construction of reserve crossings over the Dnipro in Kyiv to start shortly

Kalachnyk: Construction of reserve crossings over the Dnipro in Kyiv to start shortly
Kalachnyk: Construction of reserve crossings over the Dnipro in Kyiv to start shortly

Start of work on alternative crossings

The Kyiv authorities are preparing to begin construction of several reserve crossings over the Dnipro as early as next week. This was announced by Mykola Kalachnyk, the Minister of Restoration, Infrastructure and Transport of Ukraine. He added that the possibility of constructing a tunnel under the river is also being considered in the long-term perspective.

According to the head of the ministry, the most important priority at present is protecting existing bridges and increasing their resilience to potential attacks. In parallel, a variant for creating a rapid reserve connection between the left and right banks of the capital is being worked out in case the main bridges are taken out of service. This involves embankment dams and pontoon crossings, which are intended to allow traffic over the Dnipro to be maintained.

Coordination of actions and implementation timelines

“Urgent decisions are the dam and pontoon crossing, which are built quickly… This work has already begun. A relevant coordination meeting was held with the President. We received all tasks taking criticality into account. The city had not been dealing with this independently, so a decision has now been made for the ministry, the Restoration Agency, and the military to work on it together with the capital’s authorities,” Kalachnyk told Suspilne.

The minister noted that the construction of such temporary infrastructure objects could take up to three months. At the same time, they must ensure at least half of the throughput capacity currently provided by the existing bridges.

“Preparatory work is currently underway, and construction will begin shortly. All infrastructure will be involved to ensure the maximum percentage of passability. On average, about 600,000 cars cross between the left and right banks per day. And the task is to maintain this throughput capacity. Therefore, the relevant locations where construction will begin have been identified,” said Kalachnyk.

Prospects and financing

Locations for construction have already been identified. According to Kalachnyk, similar solutions are planned to be implemented not only in the capital but also in other regions of Ukraine and not only on the Dnipro.

The possibility of constructing rapidly built concrete structures is being studied separately. Among the long-term options, a tunnel under the Dnipro is also being considered.

However, as the minister noted, the implementation of large-scale infrastructure projects will require significant financing. Preliminary estimates suggest this involves tens of billions of hryvnia, while for particularly large objects, sums could reach hundreds of billions. Therefore, the ministry is counting on the involvement of international partners and donor financing.

Comments

No comments yet. Be the first!

Leave a comment

Links are not allowed in comments. The editors may remove comments without explanation.
Back to top ↑