Complete closure of the A1: chaos caused by construction work on the Leverkusen bridge!

Complete closure of the A1: chaos caused by construction work on the Leverkusen bridge!

The anticipation of smooth travel along the A1 near Leverkusen is clouded for the time being: on the night of July 24th to 25th, the motorway in the direction of Dortmund will be completely closed. The reason for this is necessary construction work as part of the “A-bei-LEV” project, which aims to modernize the Leverkusen Rhine Bridge. The closure, which applies from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m., affects the section between the Leverkusen-West and Leverkusen motorway junctions. The diversion will be via the signposted route U11 over the A59 and A46, while the Rheindorf exit onto the A1 is also closed.

But what is behind the comprehensive construction project? A look at the Leverkusen Rhine Bridge shows that the old construction was designed for only 40,000 vehicles per day, but the actual usage is significantly higher. Therefore, the old bridge will now be demolished to make room for the second partial structure. The new bridge project includes two identical sibling bridges - one in each direction - which will provide four regular lanes and two interconnecting lanes when completed in late 2027.

Traffic problems in the region

The expansion of the bridge has already made waves in the past: in the period from January 19th to February 4th, 2024, a previous complete closure of the A1 led to chaotic conditions on the alternative routes, which squeezed into the traffic flows of the A3, A4 and A59 like bad chewing gum. The result was kilometre-long traffic jams and a tripling or multiplication of the number of traffic jam hours. The release of the first part of the new Leverkusen Bridge was then interpreted as a ray of hope for the traffic situation in the greater Cologne area.

With the opening of the first section of the bridge over the Rhine, through which trucks are finally allowed to pass again, the detours seem to be a thing of the past. The ADAC sees the work as a step in the right direction to restore the ring character for road freight transport.

Infrastructure in focus

The Leverkusen Bridge is a small but crucial part of Germany's transport infrastructure, considered one of the largest in Europe. In 2023, the federal government invested around 8.47 billion euros in road traffic to keep around 38,000 kilometers of federal roads and 13,200 kilometers of motorways in good condition. This is particularly relevant because, according to current statistics, the condition of many highway bridges is rated at around 70% “satisfactory” or better.

However, the challenge remains great: traffic on important routes continues to be affected during construction work. The expansion of the Leverkusen Rhine Bridge is therefore not just a local, but a nationally important project that is important both for attentive commuters and for national traffic.