Since January, it has been construction time again. As reported, the city is renewing the sewer on Ubierstrasse. It started in the area of Am Arndtplatz, and since then the work has has been moving in the direction of Rheinallee. For motorists, this means not only longer waiting times at the mobile traffic lights, but also some creative driving skills being needed for the makeshift lanes. For the residents who live there it is stressful and no one wanted the GA to quote them by name. The construction has now reached Denglerstrasse. So it's time to ask the head of Bonn's civil engineering office, Peter Esch, why there is so much digging going on along the MUK route.

On location, he emphasizes that it's a "challenging construction site" for everyone involved, precisely because of the traffic situation. "But you can be sure that we won't do the same spot twice," says Esch. Mostly, he says it involves the pipelines or conduits underground, which have been affected either by concrete corrosion or hydraulic problems. "We detect damage by driving over them with small camera robots; if the pipes are larger, we also do walk-throughs," the department director explains. The city is obligated to repair damaged elements for both environmental and legal reasons, he said.

In the current project, the Mehlem company Wekan is laying 325 meters of pipeline (40 x 60 centimeters) at a depth of up to 5.50 meters and 200 meters of pipeline (60 x 90 centimeters) at a depth of up to six meters on order from the city. The different depths are related to the slope.

The project is costing the city 1.65 million euros. In return, the canal is not only renewed, but also somewhat larger. It is unclear when the original system was built. "There is no reliable data on the year of construction, but in the database it is dated 1917," says Esch. Hydraulic extensions are less common, he said, but there will be one at Plittersdorfer Strasse in 2023. "The fact that the sewer is undersized was determined when we were preparing the general drainage plan for the city, which we are currently working on," Esch said. 267 meters of sewer will then have to be replaced between Körnerstrasse and Ubierstrasse.

While the Wekan company is slowly reaching a finish in Rheinallee, the Stadtwerke Bonn (SWB) is already preparing to gradually replace 640 meters of water and 1,420 meters of power supply lines in the same section. SWB is investing approximately 600,000 euros. "Our colleagues at BonnNetz currently expect construction to begin on September 27," said deputy press officer Veronika John when asked. Gas, water and electricity house connections will be exchanged or reconnected to the new supply lines.

In order to set up the construction site, Ubierstrasse will probably have to be closed in the direction of Mehlem from September 20, while it will remain a one-way street in the direction of Bonn, John said. According to Esch, the detour to the south will be via Plittersdorfer Strasse, Beethovenallee, Uhlandstrasse and Rheinallee. "The detour route for the buses through the villa district will require approximately two to three minutes more," says the spokeswoman. Lines 610, 638 and N10 will all be affected.

The one-way street arrangement will last until summer 2022. And then it will get worse for residents and users - probably not only in terms of perception. For the final road construction, the section between Am Arndtplatz and Rheinallee will have to be completely closed during the summer holidays in 2022. The city can only determine what all the work will cost the residents after it is completed. "The expected contributions per square meter of property area are 6.50 to 8.50 euros for two- to four-story buildings on properties used primarily for residential purposes and 10.50 to 11 euros for four-story buildings with a commercial surcharge," says civil engineering department head Esch.

Orig. tex: Silke Elbern - Translation: ck