Two Central Prague Streets Go Car-Free

Melantrichova and Michalská streets, adjacent to Prague’s Old Town Square, have become pedestrian-only

Dave Park

Written by Dave Park Published on 22.07.2016 15:49:40 (updated on 22.07.2016) Reading time: 1 minute

Pedestrians are slowly taking back Prague streets.

Earlier this summer, Malostranské náměstí, once a parking lot, became a car-free zone with plans to turn it into a cultural hotspot.

Earlier this week, Prague mayor Adriana Krnáčová announced that the city’s long-gestating Segway ban would finally take effect from August.

And now, Prague’s Melantrichova and Michalská streets, once clogged with tourists and the occasional automobile attempting to weave between them, have become car free, reports iDnes.cz.

The two streets serve as the main footpaths for pedestrians travelling between Old Town and Wenceslas Squares in Prague’s historical center.

“The street acts as a link between Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square and is under heavy burden from pedestrian traffic. This particular section is quite short so the above measures made perfect sense. It acts as the culmination of traffic easing measures that were planned for a long time,” said Mayor Ulrich Lomecký.  

The car-free zones will not only be enforced by signs barring entry. Retractable columns blocking automotive traffic have been erected at a cost of 4.5 million CZK, and the area will be monitored by CCTV cameras.

Additional locations in central Prague may also take similar measures to limit or restrict automotive traffic.

On September 22, the Prague edition of the international Car Free Day will take place at Národní třída.  

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