Brankov Bridge in Belgrade

Illuminated Brankov Bridge

Belgrade has a huge problem!

The capital of the Republic of Serbia with 17 districts and 1.6 Mio habitants situated at the confluence of two major rivers (Danube and Sava) has just two major bridges (Gazela and Brankov Bridge) to connect the city to the surrounding and to swallov the huge traffic that crosses the country (Belgrade lays on the north-south corridor that connects Western Europe with Turkey and Greece) and this two bridges are cronically congested! (this is expected to be alleviated by the construction of a bypass connecting the E70 and E75 highways).

(The title foto is from www.tt-group.net)

One of this two bridges, the Brankov Bridge (Бранков мост) has became a landmark in the panorama of Belgrade. It connects basically the city center with New Belgrade.

Kralj Aleksandar I  Bridge (how the bridge

was called until it was destroyed in 1941)

with serbo-byzantine decorated pylons

 

The old bridge but looking on the other direction

The bridge was rebuilt in 1957 after it had been destroyed in 1941 (WW II) replacing the former King Aleksandar I from 1934.

Brankov Bridge in the 60’s 

as it was still a single span bridge

(picture from http://www.staribeograd.com)

Novi Beograd was in the beginning (in the background the USCE-tower).

The lower part of the bridge from the New Belgrade side. 

In the night it's illuminated and give a nice look 
like you see in the title picture

(picture from panoramio map of the bridge)

The bridge actually uses lower parts of the former bridge's pylons (decorated by Ivan Meštrović in Serbo-Byzantine style) as outer constraints for its two secondary spans.

 Crossing the bridge there is a beautiful view

to the old city with the Saborna Church (here a post I made)

another landmark of Belgrade

 

On one side the view goes to the city with St.Sava Temple

 

Looking toward Brankova Street, the entrance to the city center

During communist times the bridge was named "Brotherhood and unity bridge" (Most bratstva i jedinstva) but the name was not widely used.
It found the name Brankov Bridge named after Branko Radicevic a  Serbian romanticist poet. There is a monument erected facing the sava River and it’s a work od the sculptor Aleksandar Zarin.
Gospodska Street, where he lived was renamed for him into Brankova. So the bridge now connects Brankova (near Terazije) and Mihajla Pupina Bulevar (in New Belgrade).