Chorzowska Street in Katowice is a key road in the Metropolis GZM, located in the districts of Dàb, Koszutka, Osiedle Tysiàclecia, and à Âródmieà Âcie. It serves as a direct road link between Katowice's city center and Chorzów, from which it derives its name. The street is part of National Road 79 along its entire length. Tram tracks, in place since 1897, run along the street. Between 2002 and 2007, the section including , Jerzy ZiÃÂtek Square, and Chorzowska Street was redeveloped to accommodate the Central Road Route. The street is lined with high-rise buildings, office complexes, and the Silesia City Center shopping center.
Chorzowska Street begins at Jerzy ZiÃÂtek Square (intersection of Wojciech Korfanty Avenue and ). It intersects with . At the junction with and Friedrich Wilhelm Grundmann Street (the so-called "city center bypass", near ), there is an exit from the tunnel under the roundabout. This includes two tunnels, 672 m and 657 m long, facilitating eastâÂÂwest transit between Chorzowska Street and . The street continues past , , and . Before the intersection with and (Atrakcji Square), there is an exit to the Nikodem and Józef Reniec Route.
Further along, Chorzowska Street forms the boundary between Chorzów and Katowice, serving as the northern boundary of Katowice's Osiedle Tysiàclecia and the southern boundary of Chorzów's Silesian Park. It ends at the city border, near a pedestrian path to Silesian Stadium, where it becomes Katowicka Street.
From the late 18th to the mid-19th century, industrial complexes were enclaves in a still-rural landscape. The development of industry led to the regulation of some roads and the creation of new ones, which became significant for the city's future urban framework. Industrial complexes gradually disappeared from the city's map, and within its original cadastral boundaries, no smelters or mines remain today due to urbanization. Industrial functions gave way to those typical of an expanding urban center, where industry management hubs concentrated. Regulated straight sections of early industrial roads and rural paths were incorporated into the urban street network. Two main communication axes â east-west (now Chorzowska Street and further Warszawska Street) and northâÂÂsouth (now Wojciech Korfanty Avenue, , and ) â formed the main urban framework of à Âródmieà Âcie.
The road from Katowice to Królewska Huta (now Chorzów) was well-established by the first half of the 19th century, routed behind the former pond of the . On 1 January 1828, a wooden building for the first school in Dàb was opened at 153 Chorzowska Street, expanded in the 1840s and replaced with a new brick building in 1856 at the same location. In 1870, the KattowitzâÂÂKönigshütter Chausee-Aktien Verein company improved the road. In 1897, a tram line to Królewska Huta was established, initially served by steam trams, and from 1907 by electric trams to Bytom.
During the Second Silesian Uprising in August 1920, fighting between Polish insurgents and Germans occurred near Dàb along the road to Królewska Huta. The street was named Königshütter StraÃÂe until 1922 and from 1939 to 1945, and Szosa Królewsko-Hucka from 1924 to 1939. During the interwar period, a carbide lamp burner factory operated at number 179. Between 1933 and 1934, four residential blocks for the homeless were built at numbers 240, 242, 244, and 246 as part of affordable social housing. At number 153, a post and telegraph office and a police station operated during the interwar period.
During the Polish People's Republic, the street was part of the international road E22a. It was named after Felix Dzerzhinsky. In the late 1960s, a complex of commercial pavilions and residential buildings, designed by Stanisà Âaw Kwaà Âniewicz, was built on the northern side in the Koszutka area. Named after Julian Marchlewski, this estate was part of the city's general urban and architectural reorganization plan.
From 1963 to 2003, the , with its distinctive 50 cables supporting the roof, stood at the intersection of and Chorzowska Street. One cable was damaged in 1996, and in April 2003, a private company demolished the hall.
From 1985 to 2000, the street was part of the former national road 914.
Between 2002 and 2007, the section of , Jerzy ZiÃÂtek Square, and Chorzowska Street was redeveloped for the Central Road Route. The , 592 m long and 31.12 m wide in an "S" shape, was built over . It connects Chorzowska Street to the Nikodem and Józef Reniec Route. On 3 August 2010, the street was part of the third stage of the 2010 Tour de Pologne, and on 2 August 2011, the third stage of the 2011 Tour de Pologne.
Near the central headquarters of ING Bank à Âlàski, the so-called "Western Gate" marks one of the entrances to the city center, symbolizing the boundary of the downtown area.
A 2007 study for the Katowice City Office found that during the afternoon peak, traffic volume on Chorzowska Street from Piastów Street to Bracka Street was 3,279 vehicles (89.5% passenger cars, 6.4% vans, 2.4% trucks, 1% buses), and near Silesia City Center, 6,245 vehicles (91.8% passenger cars, 3.9% vans, 1.5% trucks, 1.3% buses). Noise levels along Chorzowska Street range from 70.6 dB to 74.3 dB, and near the tram line, from 60.8 dB to 73 dB.
The street includes a northern water main (Dn 800/600 MaczkiâÂÂKatowice) with a 600 mm diameter, a district heating main (PEC â 2 x Dn 700), and a medium-pressure gas pipeline (à225 mm).
The following notable buildings are located along Chorzowska Street:
Other institutions along Chorzowska Street include: commercial and service businesses, shops, the Czà Âowiek dla Czà Âowieka Foundation, the Kpda Foundation for Accounting Development, medical warehouses, branches of Post Office No. 1, and housing associations.