Bear's Bridge
Built heritage
The 363-meter-long structure spanning the border is in better or worse condition, but for more than 80 years it has been providing a connection between Csallóköz and Transdanubia. Before its construction, however, people of the time had to travel from Bratislava all the way to Komárom if they wanted to cross the Danube by bridge. At that time, Csallóköz was connected to Transdanubia by ferries and ferry boats, so for example, from the 19th century a steam ferry operated between the two banks at Medvé. And although the idea of building a Danube bridge in the region had already arisen before the First World War, its implementation was ultimately thwarted by the decoupling of the Great War and Csallóköz.
This situation fundamentally changed in 1938. As a result of the first Vienna decision and the return of the highland areas, the issue of the Danube bridge became relevant again. The only way to cross the Danube on dry land between Csallóköz, which had been returned to Hungary, and Transdanubia was via the Komárom Bridge. In order to ensure efficient freight and passenger traffic, the Hungarian government decided relatively quickly to build the Medvei Bridge. All this just a few hundred meters from where, in 1938, following the first Vienna decision, the Hungarian army first landed at Csallóköz.
Construction work began in 1939, under the direction of the Hungarian Wagon and Machine Works Co. Ltd. in Győr, and lasted until 1942. After the test load and the temporary opening of the bridge, the ceremonial handover took place on March 13, 1943. Miklós Horthy also attended the ceremony. The Medvei Bridge, built amidst the hardships of World War II, was equipped with a pedestrian and bicycle lane in addition to a carriageway. It is particularly interesting that contemporaries considered the construction work on this bridge to be the most complex.
Just one year after the bridge was handed over, in 1944, it was hit by a bomb, and then in the spring of 1945, the retreating German troops partially blew it up. The temporary and by no means complete restoration was finally carried out by Soviet military units with Hungarian assistance in 1945-46. Given that at that time there was only minor border traffic on the bridge, all this served its purpose. And although significant repair work was carried out on the right-bank pier in 1956-57, the final restoration had to wait for years.
The Medve Bridge was finally completely renovated between 1970 and 1973 on the basis of a bilateral Hungarian-Czechoslovak agreement. The occasion for the restoration was the planned construction of the Bős-Nagymaros barrage system. The transformation of the bridge thus became logistically necessary, and accordingly, during the renovation, the bridge superstructure was raised in accordance with shipping requirements. This is when the Medvei Bridge actually took on the form we know today. However, even after the restoration, the bridge could only be used with restrictions. It took years for the Medvei Bridge to finally be open to traffic without restrictions, 24 hours a day, from 1979. Significant renovation work was carried out in 1993-94, and in 2002, structural repair work was carried out.
And what is the situation on the Medvei Bridge today? According to statistics, the bridge is used by an average of 5,320 vehicles per day. Of these, approximately four thousand are passenger cars and vans, and one thousand are trucks.
This situation fundamentally changed in 1938. As a result of the first Vienna decision and the return of the highland areas, the issue of the Danube bridge became relevant again. The only way to cross the Danube on dry land between Csallóköz, which had been returned to Hungary, and Transdanubia was via the Komárom Bridge. In order to ensure efficient freight and passenger traffic, the Hungarian government decided relatively quickly to build the Medvei Bridge. All this just a few hundred meters from where, in 1938, following the first Vienna decision, the Hungarian army first landed at Csallóköz.
Construction work began in 1939, under the direction of the Hungarian Wagon and Machine Works Co. Ltd. in Győr, and lasted until 1942. After the test load and the temporary opening of the bridge, the ceremonial handover took place on March 13, 1943. Miklós Horthy also attended the ceremony. The Medvei Bridge, built amidst the hardships of World War II, was equipped with a pedestrian and bicycle lane in addition to a carriageway. It is particularly interesting that contemporaries considered the construction work on this bridge to be the most complex.
Just one year after the bridge was handed over, in 1944, it was hit by a bomb, and then in the spring of 1945, the retreating German troops partially blew it up. The temporary and by no means complete restoration was finally carried out by Soviet military units with Hungarian assistance in 1945-46. Given that at that time there was only minor border traffic on the bridge, all this served its purpose. And although significant repair work was carried out on the right-bank pier in 1956-57, the final restoration had to wait for years.
The Medve Bridge was finally completely renovated between 1970 and 1973 on the basis of a bilateral Hungarian-Czechoslovak agreement. The occasion for the restoration was the planned construction of the Bős-Nagymaros barrage system. The transformation of the bridge thus became logistically necessary, and accordingly, during the renovation, the bridge superstructure was raised in accordance with shipping requirements. This is when the Medvei Bridge actually took on the form we know today. However, even after the restoration, the bridge could only be used with restrictions. It took years for the Medvei Bridge to finally be open to traffic without restrictions, 24 hours a day, from 1979. Significant renovation work was carried out in 1993-94, and in 2002, structural repair work was carried out.
And what is the situation on the Medvei Bridge today? According to statistics, the bridge is used by an average of 5,320 vehicles per day. Of these, approximately four thousand are passenger cars and vans, and one thousand are trucks.