Hartigova after reconstruction: A bike lane in the uphill section and new bike stands

The current phase of reconstruction covered a 380-meter-long section between Černínova Street and Pražačka. The overall street profile renewal follows the reconstruction of the lower part of Hartigova (formerly Koněvova) in previous years.

From a cycling infrastructure perspective, a protective bike lane, 1.5 to 1.75 meters wide, has been marked in the uphill section. The lane runs continuously uphill for a total length of 1.5 kilometers, starting from Husitská Street. In the downhill section, where higher cyclist speeds are expected, no separated bike solution was created. Reportedly, building a separate bike path was not feasible due to the project’s age. To mark bike lanes in both directions, the road would need to be widened by half a meter, which would reduce the width of the sidewalks. This was rejected by the Prague 3 city council, which wanted to maintain the number of parking spaces. According to the Prague cycling master plan, the street is planned to accommodate the main cycling route A240, which is the lowest category of Prague’s cycling routes.

As mentioned, the bike lane exists only in the uphill section. In the downhill section, bike pictograms have been marked near traffic islands to signal to drivers that they should not overtake cyclists in narrow areas.

As part of the reconstruction, a total of 7 bike rack clusters were added, providing parking for up to 22 bicycles. These are located on the sidewalk near pedestrian crossings or parking spaces. In Prague, adding bike racks during street reconstructions is not yet a standard part of street furniture, but they were requested here by Prague 3’s transport councilor Ondřej Rut (Green Party).

AutoMat’s comments

The signage design was partially influenced by comments from the AutoMat association (Městem na kole is an independent project of the association, editor’s note), to which Prague City Hall partially agreed. AutoMat requested a designated bike lane in the uphill section, which would provide slightly higher protection under the regulations. However, the city rejected this request because buses would need to enter the bike lane near the islands, and entering a designated lane would break the rules.

On the other hand, the city incorporated AutoMat’s suggestion to ensure a continuous bike lane in front of the public transport stops and added bike pictograms in the downhill section at least in areas where overtaking cyclists is not possible—specifically, at the new pedestrian islands.

Four trees

Prague 3 also successfully added four new trees to the project, located in the northern part of Hartigova Street near Černínova. Due to the old design, greenery or water retention areas were not incorporated into the rest of the street. Additionally, pedestrian conditions were improved, with several new crossings added, and safety was increased at the corners of side streets.