Bagration Bridge

The Bagration Bridge is a commercial pedestrian bridge across the Moskva River in the western part of central Moscow, connecting Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment with Taras Shevchenko Embankment. The crossing links the exit of the Delovoy Tsentr metro station and the Moscow-City business district with Tower 2000 on the opposite bank. The structure combines the functions of an urban crossing, a shopping arcade, and an observation deck offering a panorama of the business district’s skyscrapers.

The bridge opened in September 1997, timed to coincide with the celebration of Moscow’s 850th anniversary, and became the first completed structure of the Moscow-City complex. The design was developed by architect Boris Tkhor and structural engineer Vladimir Travush. The bridge was named in honor of Pyotr Bagration, an infantry general who commanded the 2nd Western Army at the start of the Patriotic War of 1812. In doing so, the capital continued the tradition of naming new structures after commanders of the Napoleonic era.

The bridge’s span is a metal truss triangular in cross-section, with an overall length of 147 plus 49 meters and a height of 12 meters. The crossing itself is 214 meters long and 16 meters wide, with a clearance above the Moskva River of up to 14 meters. The bridge has two levels: the lower level is a fully glazed covered gallery with moving walkways for pedestrians, while the upper level, partly glazed, is occupied by shops and an open observation deck. The structure covers more than 13,600 square meters, of which over 4,000 square meters are given over to commercial space. The bridge also includes a four-level underground car park with capacity for more than 300 vehicles.

From 2004 the bridge was managed by the company Miosor, controlled by the Moscow city government and simultaneously responsible for Tower 2000. In October of that year, in the lobby of the shopping center on the bridge, on the side of Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment, the sculptural composition “Tree of Life” by Ernst Neizvestny was unveiled. Piers used by pleasure boats are located by the crossing on both embankments. The bridge was later operated by the company Gals-Development.

Today the Bagration Bridge remains part of the transport and pedestrian infrastructure of Moscow-City, linking the business district with the Taras Shevchenko promenade. The observation deck on the upper level is a popular spot for viewing the business center’s skyscrapers. In 2025 the structure was closed for major reconstruction; one of the reasons was the construction nearby of a 398-meter-tall high-rise business center for Wildberries. The bridge’s northern vestibule was dismantled in May of that year.

The Bagration Bridge remains a recognizable symbol of business Moscow — an example of an engineering structure that combined a transport function with public space. For more than a quarter of a century it has served as a link between the historic embankments and the capital’s new business district, and the name of the 1812 commander in its title recalls the continuity of the city’s toponymy.