Rivers always played a very important role in the arid climate of Central Asia. People settled near water because they needed it for their everyday needs and farming. The city of Bishkek is also strategically located between two rivers: Ala-Archa and Alamedin.


Soviet planners created an elaborate system of irrigation that would help drain the swamps and effectively use water from rivers for irrigating the city and farming fields around it. Rivers also became corridors for channeling fresh air from the mountains across the city. Roads and sidewalks along the rivers provided residents of the nearby residential areas with spaces for leisure walking, jogging, socializing. In the memories of many long-term city residents, rivers played a very important role.


During the 1990-s, people and companies encroached into the territories along the rivers by extending their plots, by building new properties, and in a number of segments completely blocking the access for cars and pedestrians. People. who lived close to the rivers, began throwing their trash there. Loss of river territories as a public space and their regular irresponsible trashing by the nearby residents, led to a very quick deterioration of the rivers and until now, not much has changed.

In the context of environmental crisis and significant shortage of public spaces in Bishkek, rivers could and do play an immensely important role by carrying water to irrigate Bishkek’s greenery, by bringing coolness during warm days, by serving as channels for moving fresh air from the mountains, and by providing paths for leisure walks and sport activities and public spaces for recreation.

The city of Bishkek is located on the planes of Chui valley at the feet of Tyan-Shan mountains. The mountains border the valley in the South. The name of the valley comes from the name for the Chu River running from East to West and collecting all rivers and streams flowing across the valley from the mountains. For almost two millennia, the valley was a home to the routes of the ancient Silk Road crossing it in the East-West direction and settlements were established at the intersections of the Silk Road with the rivers

One of such settlements was the medieval settlement Dzhul located next to the river, which is nowadays known as Alamedin. Dzhul was established approximately in the 7^th century CE. It was an important trading and resting location for merchants traveling along the Silk Road. By the 15^th century, Dzhul lost its significance and declined.

In the beginning of 19^th century, the valley was occupied by the Kokand Khanate army led by Lyashker Kushbegi. Several fortresses were built including the Pishpek fortress in the location not too far from the original location of Dzhul settlement. Kokand emissaries imposed tax on the nomadic Kyrgyz tribes of Chui valley and Pishpek served the strategic military and defense purposes. The fortress had two layers of protective walls and a trench filled with water from Alamedin river. The fortress functioned for 40 years (1925-1965).

In 1865, the fortress was attacked and occupied by the Russian Tsarist army. The Russian administration preserved the original name Pishpek, but the fortress was destroyed and a new town was built. It stretched to the West and occupied the entire area between Alamedin and Ala-Archa rivers. There were five other streams of water flowing through the city and town planners had fill in the spaces between the streams. The Silk Road track acquired a new name Tashkent track. It served as the Northern border of urban fabric; area North of tracks was used for planting gardens. The area East of town, just next to Alamedin River was turned into an important market place serving the needs of town residents nearby settlements. So, we could suggest that already more than a century ago, the riverbank was an important public place.

In 1918, the Tsarist administration was replaced by the Soviet administration and Bishkek became a part of the Turkestan ASSR and in 1926, it was renamed into Frunze. Over 73 years, the city has significantly expanded its boundaries. Rivers used to be the Eastern and Western boundaries of the city became were now dividing the city into three more or less equal parts

One of the main tasks that Soviet urban planners and engineers had for Frunze was to dry the area from excessive water. They achieved this by creating a very elaborate system of irrigation. Two main technical solutions were introduced. First of all, four canals with concrete banks were built – all running from East to West: Southern, Eastern, Western and Small. The largest of four was the Western Big Chui Canal. The purpose of the these canals was to collect water flowing from the mountains and redistribute it through the network of irrigation ditches across the city. This engineering project was very successful and not only Soviet planners managed to dry the place, but also to turn the city into one of the greenest cities of the Soviet Union.

The second engineering solution was to reinforce the banks of both rivers with concrete and build a system of cascades made of dissipation walls placed at 60-80 m from each other along the entire length of both rivers.

In addition, a very elaborate system of dams was built channeling the water. Residents could regulate the amount and direction of water from rivers and canals for irrigating their neighborhoods.

During the Soviet times, rivers obtained the status of technical engineered urban objects. They purposes were to safely channel water through the city during floods and to effectively distribute water for irrigation. Rivers were placed under the control of the Ministry of Emergency Situations (MChS) and a 150 m “red” corridor along the river was established that banned any form of capital construction. Rivers were supposed to have an uninterrupted for access for MChS machinery through the entire length of the river. In addition, sidewalks were built along almost the entire length or both rivers and some canals.

Once the river enters the city it goes through a number of different urban zones with their own unique characteristics. We can distinguish five main zones: 1) eco-zone, 2) high-density residential (micro-districts), 3) industrial, 4) commercial and 5) low-density residential. The land-use diagram on the following map depicts these five zones and various land-use categories within each zone. Each zone has its own way it treats the river and different ways the river connects to the adjacent territories.

In addition, if we pay attention to the green color, we can see that there is a number of green zones attached to the river. The deeper analysis reveals several categories of urban green spaces: 1) natural or authentic green, 2) parks, 3) open public green spaces, 4) private green spaces, and 5) public spaces, which are currently not accessible (Figure 21). Natural authentic green areas are located in the soc-called eco-zone. These are unirrigated, unmanned areas with grass and small trees. Our recommendation is that their authentic character must be preserved. There are several public parks, which are very popular among city residents and we recommend creating better connections with the river in order to enhance the recreational opportunities for residents and give them a chance to combine their walks in the parks with the walks along the river. In addition, there are several smaller scale green public spaces, which are well-connected to the river. These include green spaces inside the nearby apartment buildings, public schools, university, kindergartens, and somewhat accidental open spaces emerging between the river and nearby buildings. There is also greenery in the private low-rise houses adjacent to the river. While they are not accessible to public, they do help creating shade for the by-passers. Finally, there are some green spaces, like that of a Botanical Garden on Gorkogo Street or of Kyrgyz Cinema, which are close to the river, but currently closed for public. We highly recommend opening these green spaces for public.

Land-use analysis shows the diversity of land-uses along the river, which has the great potential for experiencing the city through traveling along it. However, besides traveling along the river, it is also important to understand how easy it is to travel across the river. This is done in the next section on connectivity analysis.

One of the main infrastructural elements of the river is bridges connecting the opposite banks. We can distinguish at least five categories of bridges: 1) railway bridges, 2) junctions, 3) car bridges, 4) mixed car and pedestrian, and 5) pedestrian. Railway bridges serve only the purpose of trains passing, there is no space for cars and pedestrians; however, pedestrians regularly walk along the railway trucks. Bridges for cars are made mostly at the main Bishkek roads running in the East-West direction. Pedestrian bridges are often placed separately next to the car bridges or they are mixed with a short barrier separating the traffic from pedestrians. Finally, there is quite a variety of pedestrian bridges ranging from those made of concrete and very simple metal bridges.

The analysis of connectivity using the GIS 10-minute walking isochrones shows that the two banks of the river are quite well connected. As you can see in the Figure 23, residents can reach a bridge within just ten minutes almost anywhere along the river. The only major exception is a large segment (2.6 km) between Yuzhnaya Magistral and Gorodok Sovmina in the South of the city that doesn’t provide any chance to cross the river.

This section analyzes the morphology of urban fabric: buildings and open spaces in five zones identified during the land-use analysis. We analyze each zone and develop recommendations for each zone individually.

This is the area where Ala-Archa river crosses the urban boundary and enters the city. Its urban journey starts with the Gorodok Sovmina residential area, consisting of eight multi-floor apartment buildings constructed in the Soviet times and located on the Eastern side of the river. A small pedestrian bridge connects the neighborhood with a vast open space on the other side covered with grass and small trees. There is a high-voltage electricity line with tall electricity poles running next to the river, which is probably the main reason why this space remained unbuilt until now and why it is going to stay in such way. Residents of apartment buildings actively use this open space: walking, playing with children, and doing sports. The eastern bank North of apartment buildings is occupied by low-rise residential area. However, this area is not really connected to the river and there are no bridges to cross the river to the open space across the river. In the middle of the zone, river crosses the Southern Chui Canal and to the North of it on the Eastern bank, there is Victory Park, which is extremely popular, particular in the evening times

A more detailed analysis of the building fabric reveals several interesting typologies. The very first building has an open-book form which opens to the river and to the green space across the river

Seven other apartment buildings are located at approximately 75 degrees to the river and their yards open to the river.

Finally, there is low-rise housing area that doesn’t have any access to the open space across the river. Residents attempt to appropriate the river space. The photo below shows how someone created a concrete platform in the river, placed a bench on it, made the stairs to go down to it from the bank and even made a fence with a lock to ensure his or her ownership

Once the river passes under the Yuzhnaya Magistral, it enters the area of high-density residential area of micro-districts. Following maps show nearly 100 multi-floor apartment buildings and many open and green spaces located along the river. According to the survey results discussed in the previous section, this is the most popular segment of both rivers. It has proper sidewalks on both sides of the river and it is actively used by residents as the area for walking and recreation. It provides very nice views onto the mountains and the quality of riverbanks, dissipation walls and the riverbed itself is quite good with one exception – near the KGUSTA university, where trucks used to dig stones. Roads on the both sides of the river were recently renovated on the money from Chinese grant and the sidewalks along the river were paved with new stones. However, in the process of renovation, a large number of trees located along the river were cut and not replanted. This makes the river-walks very unfriendly and uncomfortable during hot summer days.

Another problem is the presence of two visual barriers: casino built on the river and a bridge turned into a billboard for advertising. These obstacles kill the view to the mountains and break the smooth flow of air along the river.

The morphological analysis of buildings reveals several interesting typologies of urban fabric. There is a number of buildings, which are perpendicular to the river. Roads have proper pedestrian crossings and stairs to the sidewalks along the river.

Another typology includes buildings located on approximately 30 degrees to the river. This creates very interesting green spaces between apartment buildings and the river (Figure 32).

There are also buildings, which stand both parallel and perpendicular to the river and there is nice green area with a lot of trees next to the river. This is perhaps the nicest segment of the river. Considering that there is a small marketplace next to it, the space is very actively used by residents at different times of the year.

Finally, there is one other unique typology of space: that of various educational institutions located along the river. These include three public schools (#48, #61, and #62), one private school (Ilim) two kindergartens and Kyrgyz State University of Construction, Transport and Architecture. Soviet urban planners were very strategic in locating these educational institutions along the river: they all have open spaces that face the river, thus they are well ventilated. In daytime, these open spaces are school-children and students and in the evening time, they are actively used by residents of different ages: from little kids to pensioners who make circles around the school stadium. The proximity of river makes the experience of recreation in these public spaces particularly pleasant.

In Bishkek, the industrial zone is located along the railway lines that cut through the city almost in the middle of it. So, as the river approaches the city center, it passes through the industrial territory. Following maps shows how large industrial buildings are located on the right bank of the river, while its left bank is occupied by the low-rise housing of Rabochi Gorodok neighborhood (Working Class Town). This segment of the river has several major features. Perhaps the most important one is its ruinated character. Since most of Bishkek industries stopped working already in the 1990-s, the fences are collapsing and no one cares to fix them.

Secondly, this is another part of the river, where trucks used to come a lot to dig out stones. They destroyed the dissipation walls, deepened the riverbed, which then quickly eroded and resulted in the collapse of concrete riverbanks. So, the river and its banks are in a very hazardous condition

The last segment of this area has industrial buildings on both sides of the river (Figure 40). There is a nice green space separating river from the road, which currently is not looked after very well, but has good potential as a public space.

After passing through the industrial zone, the river enters the area of a very dense commercial zone where one of the largest Bishkek’s markets – Osh Bazaar – is located

There is a small and not well looked after park at the beginning of segment. Quite a lot of people pass through this park on the way from Molodaya Gvardiya Boulevard to Lev Tolstoi Street and with proper care this park could become an important public space. Then, the river passes under the railway lines. There is no proper way to cross the railway tracks and this crossing is rather abandoned. Because of this and because of central heating pipes running next to railways, the place became very popular with homeless people, who sleep next to the river under the bridge.

After the railways, the river enters one block of residential apartments and we can observe one unique typology of space: apartment buildings directly facing the river. Unfortunately, these residential yards along the river are not really used as public space for residents; most of the space is used as parking for some of the residents’ cars. The Western bank does not have a passage, it is blocked by the industrial plot and plots of low-rise housing.

Beginning from Moskovskaya street, the river enters the very densely built commercial area of Osh bazaar and for three blocks, the passage along the river is completely blocked on its both sides by commercial structures of the bazaar. The only way to keep going along the river is inside the bazaar.

In its last urban segment, Ala-Archa River enters the area of low-rise housing.

The river itself becomes much smaller as it nears the end and often there is not much water left. Besides housing, the area also has Kyrgyz Film company and a military compound, both located along the river. However, both are closed for public access. We can see a number of potentially great green spaces along the river. However, many of them are closed and not used by people

Then, there is a section of the segment where river flows just through the quiet residential area on both sides.

This section focuses on the physical shape of the river and creating typologies of river cross-sections. The analysis shows that we can distinguish three main categories: river inside high-density residential zone, river inside industrial and commercial zones, and river inside the low-rise residential zones. For each cross-section we focus on three important physical features: 1) Orientation of nearby buildings, which preferably faces the river, 2) amount of greenery on the banks and 3) walkability along the river.

This is the most successful type of cross-section. Buildings are well oriented towards the river, there is plenty of greenery, and there are walkways on both sides of the river

This is the third and by far the least successful and most problematic type of river cross-sections. Buildings are oriented away from the river, there is very little greenery, and there are no passages on either side of the river

The cross-section of river inside low-rise residential areas are not as good and people oriented as in the micro-districts. It usually has plenty of greenery, however, building are located with their backs or fences to the river and in most cases, walkways at least on one side of the river (in some places on both sides) are blocked.

This analysis gives us an additional explanation why certain segments of the river are well-perceived and actively used by the residents, while others are abandoned. It also gives us clues as to what, where and how can be improved. Thus, aided with our findings from this and previous analytical sections we can move to the chapter on project recommendations for Bishkek rivers.

We propose several main urban planning recommendations:

1. Creating the continuous uninterrupted passage for pedestrians and bikers along the entire length of both rivers and canals. Two measures are necessary for this:

a. Clearing the blocked passages. The project has identified several segments of two rivers, where passage along the river is completely blocked by various properties that occupied the space next to the river. This is illegal because according to the law, there must be a 6-meter distance between the river and any kind of property boundary on both sides of the river. The strong political will is necessary to reinforce this law and push back the properties that encroached into the municipal land.

b. Creating the under-the-bridge passages. Currently, there are several bridges on both rivers, where people walking along the river must make lengthy detours in order cross the street at traffic lights. This makes the passage longer, inconvenient and less safe. That is why we identified a number of locations, where the under-the-bridge passages would make it so much easier and faster both for walkers and bikers to cross the street on their uninterrupted journey.

2. Restoring ruined riverbeds and riverbanks. The research identified a number of locations, where current physical conditions of riverbeds and riverbanks is very hazardous. The main reason why this happened was heavy machinery digging rivers for stones. Machinery destroyed the concrete banks and dissipation walls and depleted rivers of stones, which led to the erosion of riverbeds and collapse of several concrete banks. Further digging rivers for stones must be completely forbidden, while the hazardous segments must be restored to their original conditions.

3. Reorienting buildings to face rivers. The successful examples from micro-district show that when apartment buildings face the river or their yards open to the river, this creates good conditions for connecting the building fabric with the river. However, there are several types of places along both rivers, where buildings have their backs to rivers. We highly recommend that their orientation must be reversed to face the rivers. This is important if rivers are to become aesthetically pleasing and socially and economically engaging urban elements.


4. Diversifying the social, cultural, economic and commercial activities along the rivers is necessary to make rivers attractive for city residents and to make their recreation more engaging.


5. Improving the quality of sidewalks along the river. The research identified segments of both rivers where walking paths are either missing or not paved. Sidewalks should be paved properly to be suitable for pedestrians, people on wheel-chairs, residents with baby-strollers and bikers.


6. Enhancing the quality of existing green and open spaces along rivers. Research revealed a number of existing open spaces that are currently abandoned or in poor conditions, but can become important anchors of recreation and socialization. Such elements of street furniture as benches, children playgrounds, bars for sport exercises, etc. can enhance the recreational component.

7. Planting trees along the river. This is absolutely crucial element of riverbank treatment. If we want the river-walks to be actively used, trees are very important for creating shades and make the walking experience pleasant.

In addition, we propose specific recommendations for each of the five segments of Ala-Archa River identified in this study.

● Improving quality of walking paths;
● Installing lights along the paths;
● Breaking through blocked areas to create a continuous walking route;
● Designing a promenade;
● Preserving the wild character of greenery;
● Creating better access to green spaces;
● Making some areas of Kyrgyz Film accessible to public.