Kyiv plans to build water crossings as Russia escalates bridge strikes

Ukraine's Kyiv plans ​to allocate 1 billion hryvnias ($22 ​million) to build ‌water crossings over ​the River Dnipro that divides the capital into two parts, the city mayor ‌said on Tuesday, as Russia escalates its attacks on bridges. Russia has significantly stepped up its strikes on logistics in and around ‌Kyiv in recent months, and in October it struck bridges, ‌disrupting transportation for hundreds of thousands of people.

Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that the city's defence council discussed "the project to build combined water crossings ⁠over ​the River ⁠Dnipro and the access roads leading to them." Klitschko did not give further ⁠details.

Water crossings come in various forms, including pontoons, fords and other ​low-lying structures that enable people and vehicles to cross. Disruptions to ⁠bridge traffic could become a critical issue for Kyiv residents who live ⁠and ​work on opposite sides of the wide river and have to commute across daily.

Kyiv has six main bridges. ⁠On Tuesday, an overnight Russian missile strike hit the South Bridge, ⁠President Volodymyr Zelenskiy ⁠said, calling it a "serious escalation". Earlier, Russia targeted other bridges in the city with drones. ($1 = ‌45.5605 hryvnias)