Since the Velvet revolution in 1989 the city is going through big changes. A thorough restructuring of industry is taking place – coal mining in the area of the city was stopped in 1994 and a large part of the Vtkovice ironworks near the city center has closed down in 1998, both improving the environment dramatically.
Geography and climate
Ostrava is located in the north-eastern tip of Czech Republic, very close to the Polish (15km) and Slovak (55km) borders. It spreads over the northern part of the natural north-south valley called the Moravian gate (Moravsk brna) with the average elevation of around 210m above the sea level.
The local climate is temperate with warm summers and cold, cloudy, humid winters. Due to the easterly position of the city the continental climate influences are slightly more prominent compared to the rest of the country. The yearly average of temperature is 8.6C (January: -2.4, July: 17.8), the yearly rainfall is around 600mm.
Related Travel Information
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Traffic
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