The controversial idea for a cable car project in Warsaw has returned after more than a dozen years. This time it is the Praga-Północ district authorities that are initiating work on the concept of connecting Praga Park and the Old Town and suspending a gondola over the Vistula River. As a tourist attraction, the plan promises to be extremely attractive. However, it raises doubts among activists and the city's conservationist. Why?
project boomerang
The concept of a gondola on the Vistula River is not new. Back when the Law and Justice party was in power in Warsaw's City Hall, there was a discussion in the media about a cable car between the Old Town and the Prague Zoo. The then head of the city's promotion bureau Tadeusz Deszkiewicz wrote at the time - Warsaw is so gray, and I like crazy ideas. We should have something outlandish - a cable car with gondolas in the shape of glass balls.
In 2012, JEMS Architekci presented visualizations of glass capsules over the Vistula River, or gondolas connecting the then most important attractions in the capital, the Copernicus Center, the Bilblioteka of Warsaw University and the planned development in the Praga Port.
It doesn't matter if it's a railroad or a pedestrian bridge. The idea is to cross the Vistula in a different way than a high bridge," the architects said at the time.
visualization of the 2012 project
© JEMS Architekci
A few days ago, the idea of a cable car returned thanks to the Praga-Północ district authorities. The district's city hall announced a tender for the visualization of a modern complex in Praga Park. The plans include a community center, an observation tower and, above all, an attractive cable car lift. The carriages would connect the park with the Old Town. The concept has stirred controversy. Krzysztof Michalski of the association Porozumienie dla Pragi expressed his concerns. According to him, the construction of the complex would turn Praga Park into a "funfair." Implementation would turn a very important green area for the city into a tourist attraction. Experts also share their doubts. Why?
tourist attraction
Agondola railroad with a stop in Praga Park by the observation tower could be not only a tourist attraction, but also a way to bypass traffic jams, the fastest means of transportation - in five minutes to the right bank, with beautiful views, the tender materials read .
And indeed, since the idea of a gondola over the Vistula is making a comeback, it has many of its faithful supporters....
The idea is good, it would be another tourist attraction in Warsaw and an opportunity for Praga, but much depends on the execution. First of all - there should be no interference in the landscape of the Old Town skyline, one of the most beautiful urban panoramas in the world! - says Tomasz Markiewicz, chairman of the Team of Guardians of Warsaw's Cultural Heritage ZOK, in an interview with GW.
Visualization of the gondola railroad to Wilanów, Warsaw, 2011.
© UM Warszawa
But it's the voices of opposition that resonate especially.
The idea seems crazy, though not unattractive. Frankly speaking, I would prefer footbridges for pedestrians and cyclists. Attractions like cable cars already seem a bit passe, they make sense in cities on steep hills, such as Switzerland, but in Warsaw I'm afraid that the cost of construction and maintenance won't translate into the expected attendance effect," replies Prof. Malgorzata Omilanowska, an art historian and former minister of culture, in an interview with Gazeta Wyborcza.
dresden scenario
Opponents are not lacking, and they have strong arguments. First of all, the sacrifice of green areas in the city has been a hot topic lately. Natural greenery is defended not only by activists, but also by politicians and neighborhood residents. In the age of concretization, any space that is naturally green saves Warsaw and gives shelter to animals, but also to residents.
The second risky issue raised by opponents of the railroad idea is the Dresden scenario.
The example of Dresden shows how dangerous overly aggressive modern intrusions into historic urban vistas can be. The construction of a new bridge resulted in the removal of the old city there from the UNESCO list. A similar casus could befall Warsaw's Old Town if a proposed cable car is introduced within the Old Town skyline. This would be a devastation of the view of the Old Town and the escarpment, which was precisely one of the reasons for the UNESCO listing in 1980. The view from the river and the Praga bank," says Michal Krasucki, the capital's conservationist.
Ultimately, it will be up to Warsaw councilors to decide whether to make any changes to Praga Park or the Old Town. All that remains to be done is to believe that they will keep in mind not only the benefits for visiting tourists, but also the people who make up Warsaw every day.
