Summer vacation in Cologne: Traffic chaos through construction sites begin!

Summer vacation in Cologne: Traffic chaos through construction sites begin!

With the beginning of the summer holidays in Cologne on July 14th to August 26, 2025, the construction sites also report. Significant traffic disruptions in the city can be expected in the coming weeks. The Rhine bank tunnel will be particularly affected, which is completely blocked on several weekends. This puts it on the nerves of drivers, because around 100,000 vehicles pass this tunnel every day.

The renovation work in the Rhine bank tunnel has been in full swing since July 8th. A focus is on the flood protection devices that urgently had to be renewed. These were already in a modest condition and the gutters to lower the flood protection gates are over 40 years old. In the event of flooding, these gates close both entrances and trips, which underlines the urgency of the work. As KStA.de , the renovations were originally planned for the summer of 2024, but was postponed to this summer due to high costs. Overall, the costs amount to an estimated 750,000 euros.

closures and diversions

Overall, the Rhine bank tunnel is completely blocked on the following weekends:

• 11. until July 14, 2025
• 18. until July 21, 2025
• 25. until July 28, 2025
• 1. until August 4, 2025
• 12. until September 15, 2025
• 19. until September 22, 2025

A trace is closed even during the week, but there is always a trace in every direction. During nocturnal work, partial closures of up to two traces can take place. Depirtions are set up that lead via the north-south trip.

But that's not all that Cologne road users have to expect. The Deutzer Brücke will also be renovated from today, July 14, 2025. Here the bridge in the direction of travel is completely blocked, so that a detour via the Severinsbrücke is necessary. In addition, street renovation work will be carried out on Mindener Straße by September 20, 2025.

further traffic measures

From mid -August, the crossing area Sürther Straße/Grüngürtelstraße in Rodenkirchen will also be converted. This measure is intended to increase traffic safety and is expected to take six months. Another project concerns the redesign of Gummersbacher Strasse, which will also be tackled from July 14th. The aim is to create a continuous wheel lane towards the lime.

In Ehrenfeld, a walking and bike path on the pond tube trail is created between July 28th and August 26th to increase safety for school children. And Deutsche Bahn also causes changes: From August 8, 2025, the first partial closures of the “Inner Kanalstraße” railway bridge in Nippes will be necessary.

The Cologne City Administration regularly informs the citizens about the construction sites and the work status. To do this, you can fall back on the website of antenne.nrw that reports extensively about the current traffic impairments during the summer holidays. And if you have the patience, you can also keep an eye on the traffic jams in Cologne, as can be found on stummeder-karte.de

The summer vacation not only bring relaxation, but also a lot of construction sites and traffic disruptions. If you want to cross the city at this time, you should prepare well and plan alternative routes!