Historical, but still used, twin railway bridges. They were built in the 19th century when the rail tracks reached Olsztyn and when the railway junction was located there. They are the only railway passage over the Łyna River in Olsztyn.

 

History

The railway track reached Olsztyn from Wystruc (Insterburg, Znamiensk) on 26 November 1872. The following year the railway route was lengthened to Ostróda and further to Toruń. At first, only the northern bridge was constructed. The southern one was built between 1892 and 1993. On top of each of the bridges there are two tracks. The northern bridge provides a transport link towards Gdańsk and Toruń. Trains to Warsaw and to Toruń run over the southern bridge. Undamaged structures luckily survived the turmoil of World War I and II.

 

Architectural description

The bridges are 68.2 m. long. They consist of three 15.6- metre spans shaped like semicircular vaults. The Łyna River flows under the middle span, under the side spans there are two streets: Natalii Żarskiej and Wyzwolenia Street. The height of the bridges to the water surface is 21.6 m, to the street level - 16.6 m. The bridges are 6.6 m wide, with two railway tracks each. They have a stone cornice and an iron railing. The construction is crowned with arcade friezes. Other decorative elements are as follows: round rosettes with draining pipes and vent strip of relieving chambers, which are situated within the walls, over the bridge piers. The northern bridge was made of dark granite blocks whereas the newer southern bridge was made of yellow clinker brick.

 

Interesting facts

- in German times the bridges frequently appeared in the postcards, both realistic and romantic ones. The pictures were arranged in such a way that the historical monuments of Olsztyn were seen below the bridge spans.

 

Legends

In August 1914 Russian soldiers occupied Olsztyn for one and a half day. General Kujew, a commander of one of the Russian corps, is said to have ordered to blow up the construction. However, because of a German military action the bridges were neither mined nor blown up. The Russians lacked time.

 

Practical info

- free parking lot for coaches – 50 m. away (Nowowiejskiego Street)

- absolute ban of entering the bridges

 

(c) Joanna Mariuk