Great redevelopment of Poznań city centre. A track to nowhere has been built

A major redevelopment of the city centre is underway in Poznań. Streets near the famous Okrąglak are also being worked on. It is under this building that tracks have appeared that lead nowhere.

The reconstruction of the centre of Poznań includes large parts of the streets. The works are being carried out comprehensively, with the replacement of underground installations, tracks or, finally, the surface. The small but very neglected Gwarna Street is also undergoing a metamorphosis. The pictures I have seen of the work still in progress do not make me fall into raptures. I lived in Poznań for almost seven years (2006-2013) and when writing articles about the city I pay attention to details that have always irritated me. It is already apparent that the new sections of pavements have a lot of flaws, and there is a lack of polishing, after all this is the capital of the province, but I will wait with a full assessment of the state of reconstruction until the official completion of the works. Back to the aforementioned tracks.

The project of changes in transport assumed the construction of a short section of track, which would enable trams to pass from 27 Grudnia Street into Mielżyńskiego Street. This would have provided the city with new direct tram connections. A section of track was built, but it ends in… a pavement.

The problem turned out to be what is underground. The track was supposed to run over the basement of Okrąglak. The building is listed in the register of historical monuments, but it turns out that the basements (even though they are an integral part of the building) are not covered by the conservator’s protection, so in theory they can be rebuilt. For the time being, a section of track has been built, which is impossible to use.

Officials worked for a year on the issue of backfilling part of the basement of the Roundhouse and erecting a retaining wall. During this time, Tormel (the general contractor) failed to deal with the replacement of the technical infrastructure and changed the course of the network. The city hid the design changes and to this day does not want to make much information public, and PIM (Poznań Municipal Investments – editor’s note) imposed a confidentiality clause on the contractor for many years,” reads a statement by Maria Sokolnicka-Elzanowska from the Plac Wolności Association, published by Głos Wielkopolski.

So will the track to nowhere finally become functional and the turnaround for trams be completed? Maja Chłopocka from the company Poznańskie Inwestycje Miejskie assures that the current solution is temporary and will continue to exist until the company reaches an agreement with the manager of Okrąglak.

This temporary solution allows the removal of the construction fence and the opening of this space for pedestrians. A lightweight structure on a thin substructure is being used there, which will be easy to dismantle. The material comes largely from demolition,” adds Maja Chłopocka.

The PIM representative assures that the track will be extended, but does not indicate a specific date. This depends on the issue of agreement with the owner of Okrąglak. Talks are expected to be in the final stages.

photo Poznaniator

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Photos BEFORE the redevelopment: