Traffic - Highway 42 between Bottrop and Essen remains closed
Due to massive damage to a bridge, the highway 42 between Bottrop and Essen will probably remain closed for several months. An analysis carried out over the past few days has revealed serious damage to the bridge over the Rhine-Herne Canal, the federal highway authority announced on Friday.
It is hoped that the section can be reopened in the spring, at least for cars, said a spokesperson. It is unclear whether trucks will ever be able to drive over the bridge again. A barrier system is to ensure that heavy vehicles are stopped in front of the bridge in future.
The important east-west link in the middle of the Ruhr region had already been closed for the past few days because an inspection of the ageing bridge had been brought forward. The highway was scheduled to reopen to traffic this Saturday. However, due to the damage that has now been discovered, the federal highway company responsible pulled the emergency brake.
The 53-year-old bridge has been under particular scrutiny for years because it is not actually designed for the load of 85,000 vehicles a day. A new construction is already planned, but will take several more years.
Over the next few days, the identified damage will have to be examined in more detail and repaired if possible. "In addition, a comprehensive electronic monitoring system will be installed so that the smallest changes to the bridge can be detected immediately when traffic is flowing again," said Autobahn GmbH für Westfalen. "The long-term goal remains to stabilize the bridge so that as much traffic as possible can flow until the new construction is completed."
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Source: www.stern.de
