A27 closure becomes a waiting game

According to estimates by the Ministry of Transport in Hanover, the closure of the Autobahn 27 due to an imminent subsidence of the roadway north of Bremen is likely to restrict traffic for weeks to come. The repair of the affected area will probably take at least four weeks, said a ministry spokesman in Hanover on Friday. A solution is being worked on with the federal highway company to ensure that large and heavy goods vehicles in particular, which would otherwise use the highway, do not get stuck on alternative routes. "We don't have a concrete solution yet," said the spokesperson.

The A27, which connects Bremen, Bremerhaven and Cuxhaven, has been closed in both directions since Wednesday due to the possible undermining. According to the highway company, the highway maintenance department had recently discovered subsidence on an embankment. There is a steel arch at the site, which carries a trench under the highway. An inspection revealed that the steel of the structure is so badly eroded in some places that there is a risk of subsidence. Autobahn GmbH is now examining a possible emergency repair and then a new construction.

Cuxhaven is used to import components for wind turbines

According to the Offshore Wind Energy Foundation, Cuxhaven is one of the most important seaports for the delivery of large components for wind turbines and therefore one of the most important hubs for the wind energy industry. Rotor blades in particular are landed in Cuxhaven and transported onwards from there via the A27 - around 80 percent of all rotor blades required for onshore wind turbines in Germany, according to figures.

According to Blue Water BREB (BWB), a company that handles wind turbines, more than 300 rotor blades are currently waiting at the terminal in Cuxhaven for onward transportation to construction sites in Germany. "The closure of the A27 is bringing the expansion of onshore wind energy in Germany to a standstill," said Managing Director Arne Ehlers in a statement published on Thursday. A solution is urgently needed. "Time is money," he said.

Heavy goods transports require new permits for alternative routes

To ensure that the ports in Cuxhaven and Bremerhaven in particular remain accessible, the highway company has now worked out alternative routes with the Lower Saxony State Authority for Road Construction and Transport. These lead between Bremen and Bremerhaven via the L135 and between Oldenburg and Bremerhaven via the Weser Tunnel.

However, new approval procedures are required so that the heavy goods vehicles can actually use the alternative routes. A spokeswoman for the district of Cuxhaven said on Friday that the exact routing would have to be re-coordinated for each transport that originally used the A27. By Thursday, around 180 applications for changes had therefore been received by the district of Cuxhaven alone. The regulatory authority had a lot to do. Several media outlets had previously reported on this, including the "Nordsee-Zeitung", the "Weser-Kurier" and NDR.

Traffic obstructions also on detour for car traffic

A detour has also been signposted for conventional truck and car traffic. It runs in the direction of Bremen from the Hagen junction via the U28 and in the direction of Cuxhaven from the Uthlede junction via the U33 to the Hagen junction. Both detour run through the towns of Hagen and Uthlede.

According to the district of Cuxhaven, there have been several accidents on the alternative routes since the A27 was closed. Several trucks got stuck in the hard shoulder on a narrow district road. On Friday, the district road over which the detour runs had to be temporarily closed because a crane truck had an accident.

In a statement, the Bremen Chamber of Commerce urged speed in the repair work. Companies, port operations and transshipment facilities are dependent on a functioning and efficient infrastructure. Bremen's Senator for Economic Affairs Kristina Vogt (Left Party) also spoke out in favor of speedy repairs in the regional magazine show "buten un binnen" (Radio Bremen). "The full closure must be lifted as quickly as possible. This means that it will now be repaired and patched up, but then of course the A27 must be permanently restored to a condition that prevents this from happening again."