The Marynarska interchange in Warsaw was constructed in 2013 with substantial co-financing from EU’s Cohesion Fund, as a part of the trans-European road network (TEN-T). No cycling paths were included in the project, and thus a business district where 100,000 people work was effectively cut off from southwestern Warsaw for cyclists. The amendments to the Road Infrastructure Safety Management Directive recently approved by the European Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee could ensure better quality of such projects, but will they survive contact with the Council of the EU?

The “Marynarska” interchange in Warsaw was built as a part of project “Construction of the S2 expressway from the Konotopa junction to the Puławska junction, together with the S79 section from the Airport junction to the Marynarska junction”. The project’s budget amounted to €955,883,619, of which the EU’s Cohesion Fund contributed €502,059,750. No cycling paths have been provided in the interchange area, even though they were either existing or planned on the city streets connecting to the interchange. This oversight led to a business district where 100,000 people work effectively being cut off from southwestern Warsaw for cyclists, encouraging commuting by car even on short distances.

Paweł Ziniewicz, a cycling activist from Warsaw, explains:

The Marynarska interchange in Warsaw connects the arterial city streets Marynarska and Sasanki with the S79 expressway. The multi-lane streets have a speed limit of 60 km/h and carry heavy traffic. In the interchange area there is also a popular train station (Warszawa Służewiec), and a terminus of a tram line, both serving the business district on the eastern side of the interchange. When the expressway was built in 2013, the car drivers gained comfortable flyovers and ramps, but pedestrians and cyclists were not treated as well. Pedestrians need now to climb up and down a series of stairs. Cyclists do not have any separated infrastructure and are supposed to ride in mixed traffic on multi-lane roadways. Because of slip roads and ramps, cyclists have to weave in and out between much faster moving traffic. Less proficient cyclists use the sidewalks and carry their bikes up and down the stairs. There are some lifts, but they are too small for bicycles and often broken. The junction is located near the largest office area in Warsaw – Służewiec Przemysłowy – where tens of thousands of people work. The interchange cuts off the most convenient access by bicycle from western and southwestern districts of Warsaw: Ochota, Włochy, Ursus and Bemowo.

The story is very similar to the case of M5 motorway near Szeged in Hungary, where another TEN-T road unnecessarily blocked cycling access to the city from neighbouring towns. Will the EU continue to spend billions on infrastructure projects that make it unsafe and more difficult to cycle or walk to work?

This depends on the results of ongoing discussions between the European Parliament, Council and Commission, regarding the Road Infrastructure Safety Management directive. Pedestrians, cyclists and motorcyclist have together called on the Council and Commission to take on board the amendments proposed by the European Parliament's Committee on Transport and Tourism, and, in particular, quality requirements for the needs of vulnerable road users.