Kyiv prepares alternative crossings after missile strike closes Southern Bridge
A Russian missile strike closed Kyiv’s Southern Bridge, interrupting road traffic and the metro connection between the banks of the Dnipro. Mayor Vitali Klitschko announced funding for temporary alternative crossings as specialists assessed the damage. Green Line trains operated in separate sections, and officials had not announced a timetable for restoring the crossing.
Geopolitics··Midday
Strike severs road and metro crossing
Kyiv’s Southern Bridge closed after Russian strikes on 27 October, cutting a crossing that carries both road traffic and part of the Green metro line across the Dnipro River. Mayor Vitali Klitschko released photographs of the damage as specialists assessed the structure. The ballistic missile left a large hole in the structure. Residents travelling from the largely residential left bank crossed the bridge on foot.[1], [2]
The strikes formed part of an attack that began on the evening of 26 October. Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia used 280 drones together with ballistic missiles. It reported 255 drones and 2 ballistic missiles intercepted or suppressed in its initial assessment. These were Ukrainian official counts; some drones remained airborne when the statement was issued.[1]
Green Line operates as separate sections
The Kyiv City Military Administration said Green Line trains were operating separately between Syrets and Vydubychi and between Osokorky and Chervonyi Khutir. These arrangements left the cross-river connection interrupted. The bridge remained closed while damage assessments continued, and authorities had not given a date for reopening it or restoring normal metro service. The attack followed strikes on the city beginning the previous evening.[1]
The city military administration also announced restrictions on movement across bridges during air raid alerts. The crossings had faced repeated missile and drone attacks in recent months. Those attacks prompted preparations for pontoon crossings if major bridges were damaged or unusable.[2]
City funds temporary alternatives
After a meeting of the capital’s defence council, Klitschko announced plans for temporary alternative river crossings. He said the city was providing 1 billion hryvnias for the project. Military commanders were to determine the locations, with coordination involving the city military administration. The council also discussed technical protection for existing bridges, maintenance of bomb shelters and mobile shelters. Both the Northern and Southern bridges carry tens of thousands of residents across the river each day.[2]
The city’s 1 billion hryvnia allocation is about 22 million dollars, according to the mayor’s announcement. Klitschko identified maintenance of existing shelters and the installation of mobile units among the matters considered alongside the river-crossing project and bridge-protection measures.[2]
