MOST foot–
bridge
A New Connection Between City, Lake, and Landscape
01 | VISION
Today's city of Most and the territory where the historic city once stood —later replaced by a surface mine and now by a popular lake — were deliberately isolated from each other in the last century by a corridor of road infrastructure, railway lines, and the artificial channel of the Bílina River. Today, the city faces the challenge of overcoming this barrier — both by physically reconnecting the space and by symbolic and mental reunification of both parts of the city. The city of Most will not only gain a new mobility connection between the city and the lake area through the new footbridge: the footbridge will become one of the highlights of a new route connecting the city center, the museum, and the lake.
The new footbridge will mean bridging on both a transport and symbolic level. The footbridge will be not only a technically functional, efficient, and safe transport solution, but also a new architectural landmark for the city. It will become a significant visual element in the landscape and a new gateway to the city when arriving from Chomutov and Litvínov. The footbridge will also become an impulse for the creation of high-quality public space, specifically at both of its bridgehead areas.
In the bridgehead area on the city side, a dignified space will be created, which, thanks to the synergy with the museum building, its gardens, and local monuments, will give rise to a new favorite spot with high cultural potential and significance for both the local community and visitors to the city. The bridgehead area on the lake side will respond appropriately in its concept to a number of upcoming development projects and will contribute to the creation of a pleasant, clear entrance point for a number of local destinations.
02 | INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPETITION
Competition type
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competition proposal
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project-based
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architectural-landscape
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open
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single-phase
Contracting authority
Administrator
Submission deadline:
July 23, 2026, 2:00 PM
Prizes
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1st prize: 800 000 CZK
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2nd prize: 600 000 CZK
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3rd prize: 350 000 CZK
The Jury may decide on a split placement of two participants at a single rank, where the competition proposal for the footbridge and for the Museum park will be awarded separately. In such a case, the prizes will be divided based on the estimated investment costs of the structures at a ratio of 3 : 1 (footbridge : park). The Jury may award bonuses to other participants; the total maximum amount for bonuses is set at 150 000 CZK.
Subject of the competition
Type of construction
mobility structure, park
Estimated bridging length
350-420 metres
Estimated construction costs
250-340 million CZK (footbridge),
90-120 million CZK (park)
The subject of the competition is the design of a new pedestrian and cycle footbridge, which will overcome the historically formed barrier between the city of Most and the territory of today's Lake Most, created by the confluence of road infrastructure, railway and tram lines, and the modified channel of the Bílina River. The goal is not only physical connection of both parts of the city, but also their symbolic and mental reunification. The footbridge is to become a key element of a new urban axis connecting the city center, the museum, the recreational area around the lake, and the locality in the vicinity of the relocated Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary ; at the same time, it will become a significant architectural landmark and a new entrance gateway to the city when arriving from Litvínov.
The Competition Brief also includes the design of following public spaces in the footbridge's bridgehead areas. A new Museum park is to be created on the city side — a dignified space in front of the museum, which, in mutual synergy with cultural institutions and memorial sites, will create high-quality urban space with high landscape, residential, and social value. On the lake side, the competition proposals are to suggest a landscape link and pedestrian and cycle connection between the footbridge and Lake Most and design a clear and attractive entrance point to this area. The area in question is divided into parts. The subject of the following project phase is the solution for the footbridge itself, including the bridgehead areas and the new Museum park. At an ideal level, the competition proposals are to test the possibility of creating a wider linear park connecting the museum and the State District Archive, and at the same time the concept of a landscape connection towards Lake Most.
The goal is to create a cohesive, legible, and long-term sustainable framework for the gradual transformation of this key territory. The goal of the competition is to address the territory as a single entity and select one multidisciplinary team for the design of the footbridge and the park. However, in justified cases, the Jury may decide on the selection of two separate winners, which may lead to following separate negotiated procedures without prior publication (NPWP) for the footbridge and the park.
03 | JURY
Independent Part
REGULAR MEMBERS
Ing. Michal Drahorád, Ph.D.
Jury Chair
Michal Drahorád is a civil engineer focusing on bridges and engineering structures. He has more than twenty years of practice in the field and has also been active as a teacher at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, CTU in Prague for two decades.
Ing. arch. David Hlouch
Independent Authorized Architect and urban planner (A.1, A.2, authorization No. ČKA 04117) and a trained juror of architectural and urban design competitions.
He is a graduate of the Faculty of Architecture, CTU; in 2005 he founded his own practice focused mainly on commercial and residential buildings, interiors, and retail.
After returning from a two-year stint in the USA, he joined the Czech Chamber of Architects in 2013, where as a board member and later vice-chairman of the chamber he focuses primarily on legislation, digitalization, territorial development, and architectural competitions.
In addition to design and consulting services in the areas of architecture, urban planning, territorial planning, public investment, and architectural competitions, he has held the position of Mayor of the municipality of Tehov (Prague-East) since 2014, focusing on municipal politics, territorial development, and public investment, especially at the level of local and regional governments.
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Dipl.-Ing. Eva Němcová
Eva Němcová is a landscape architect. At the Regional Development Agency of the Ústí Region, she leads an interdisciplinary team focused on the spatial development of the Podkrušnohoří region, particularly in relation to the phase-out of coal mining. She has spent many years working abroad in practice and research, and has also been occasionally involved in teaching. She has gained most of her experience in Germany, the United States, Peru, and South Africa. Her work focuses on large-scale landscape design. Notable projects include collaboration on a spatial strategy for the shrinking city of Dessau, the design of Green Infrastructure for Metropolitan Lima, participation in an expert group for the Metropolitan Lima Regional Plan, and collaboration on the design of a new inner-density neighborhood in Cape Town.
ALTERNATES
Ing. arch. Jitka Hofmeisterová
She graduated from the FA CTU in Prague and completed an internship in France at L’ecole d’architecture in Nantes. She is an Authorized Architect and a trained juror for ČKA architectural and urban design competitions. Jitka dedicated herself to exhibition activities with the project "NOVÁ ČESKÁ PRÁCE", was a member of the board of directors of the NČA, and has had her own practice since 2010, focusing primarily on reconstructions.She works closely with the studios Lábus AA, triarchitekti, Terra Florida, or in the past with the Forman Brothers Theatre.She completed training in person-centered psychotherapy (PCA).
Prof. Ing. Jan L. Vítek, CSc., FEng.
J. L. Vítek is a professor for concrete bridges and structures at the Faculty of Civil Engineering, CTU in Prague. He also works as an expert at Metrostav a.s.. He represents the Czech Republic in the International Federation for Structural Concrete (fib), where he is an active member of several commissions. Jan Vítek is a member of the Engineering Academy of the Czech Republic and other professional organizations. He specializes in advanced technologies in the field of construction of concrete bridges and structures.
Dependant Part
REGULAR MEMBERS
Marek Hrvol
Mayor of Most
He brings a strategic view of the city's development and its long-term direction to the Jury. He monitors that the design contributes to the quality of life of the inhabitants, is functional in daily operation, and at the same time corresponds to the significance of the location and the expectations of the public.
Jana Falterová Zudová
Councilor for Subsidies
She brings experience with the financing of projects and their preparation. In the Jury, she emphasizes economic sustainability, efficiency, and the real feasibility of the proposed solutions.
ALTERNATES
Václav Zahradníček
Deputy Mayor
In the Jury, he represents the city's perspective on the development of the territory and public space. He focuses on how the proposals fit into a wider context and how they contribute to the better accessibility and functionality of the location.
Patricie Prokešová
Councilor of the City of Most
She focuses on the needs of everyday users of public space. In the Jury, she accentuates safety, barrier-free access, and accessibility for everyone – pedestrians and families with children.
04 | LOCATION
Visitors will enter the footbridge towards Lake Most at the foot of Hněvín hill, near the Regional Museum in the Most district of Zahražany. The footbridge will lead them into the territory around the newly formed Lake Most. A fundamental aspect of the design should thus be its connection to the historical context, but also a natural integration into the interesting and dramatic landscape around Most.
In the heart of historic Zahražany
The territory in question was historically located not far outside the walls of the historic city of Most. In the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century, the city expanded further along the foot of Hněvín hill, where the historic district of Zahražany was established. Zahražany is today the only preserved part of the old town.
Today's museum, an architecturally significant building completed in 1913, was originally built as a State Real Grammar School. After WWII, the German grammar school ceased to exist and the building began to serve a secondary industrial school. The building began to serve as a museum in 1996, following an extensive reconstruction. In the park in front of the museum, remains of the original park layout are visible.
View of the former Pivovarský park in Most, the future Museum park, source: imostecko.cz
View into today's park in front of the District Archive, source: imostecko.cz
Demise of the old town
The demolition of the historic core of the city of Most took place predominantly in the years 1964–1982 and was directly connected with the expansion of surface brown coal mining in the North Bohemian brown coal basin. The decision on the liquidation of the old town was based on government resolutions from the late 1950s and early 1960s, which set the priority of coal mining as a key energy source for Czechoslovakia. During the demolition, most of the historical buildings were destroyed, including valuable sacral monuments, townhouses, streets and squares, and technical infrastructure. A significant exception was the Gothic Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, which was moved in 1975 by approximately 840 meters outside the mining area.
Demolition of the city of Most, Hněvín hill in the background, source: Mostecký deník
Relocation of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, source: kostel-most.cz
New Most – a dream of modernist urbanism
Parallel to the demolition of historic Most, a new urban structure was built from the 1960s in a position southeast of the original city. New Most was created as a modern city with a predominance of prefabricated residential construction, separation of residential, work, and recreational functions, and with an emphasis on capacity transport infrastructure. The first residents moved into the new apartments in the second half of the 1960s; the main stage of construction took place in the 1970s and 1980s. From the original historic city, only the predominantly villa development of the Zahražany district at the foot of Hněvín hill remained, including the classicizing building of the State Real Grammar School, where the Regional Museum and Gallery in Most is located today ; the territory in question is located right on the edge of Zahražany, in the immediate vicinity of the museum.
View of the center of New Most, source: mesto-most.cz
View of the Repre cultural center and the SHD skyscraper, source: mesto-most.cz
Reconnecting the torn city
The territory of the old town, transformed into a surface mine, was almost impenetrably separated from New Most by the so-called Most corridor. The corridor was created gradually since the 1960s as a set of transport structures (railway and tram lines, roads), energy infrastructure, technical facilities and protection zones related to mining and industry, as well as the relocated bed of the Bílina River. The function of the corridor was twofold: first, it was an answer to the question of the transport connection of significant destinations; second, it was a desirable separation of the residential city from the territory burdened by mining. However, the mine has already disappeared and been replaced by a very popular recreational landscape and Lake Most. Today, the city faces the challenge of how to reconnect the territory again — and the MO-JE footbridge is to be the answer.
05 | FOR PARTICIPANTS
All communication concerning the competition must take place officially through the contracting authority's portal.
Please note that the submission of competition proposals takes place both electronically and physically.
Electronic submission of proposals takes place through the TenderArena tool. Creating a user account requires verification; therefore, we recommend creating it well in advance of the submission deadline.
Physical submission takes place at the filing office of the Statutory City of Most during its opening hours.
Office address
Opening hours
Radniční 1/2,
434 01 Most 1
Monday 8:00–17:00
Tuesday 8:00–15:00
Wednesday 8:00–17:00
Thursday 8:00–15:00
Friday 8:00–13:00