City of Bonn lists reasons Why is the Godesberg Tunnel closed so often?
Bad Godesberg · The City of Bonn has announced night-time closures in the Bad Godesberg Tunnel this week. We explain why work cannot always be done at night.
The Godesberg road tunnel has been closed at night since Monday until Friday, 26 May. The reason: cleaning and maintenance work. According to the City of Bonn, this work is necessary and planned twice a year. They are carried out every year in May and October, and the tunnel has to be closed for the work. The cleaning and maintenance is an important measure to ensure that the twin-tube tunnel remains safe for all road users in the long term.
In the press release, the city announced the closure from 9pm to 5am on each of the five days. The lighting, ventilation and traffic technology will be checked and maintained, and the manhole covers will be replaced. The civil engineering office asks for your understanding, as there may be some noise disturbance. The city emphasises that this work, which is required by law, is being carried out at night so that as few road users as possible are affected by the work.
From time to time, however, there are unscheduled closures in the tunnel. A spokesperson for the city's press office told the GA that efforts are being made to "combine the necessary work as much as possible". Numerous technical systems were installed in the Godesberg tunnel - including alarm and extinguishing systems for fire protection, emergency call and monitoring systems as well as radio and intercom systems.
Fire protection system refurbished in 2019
Especially in the event of a fire in the tunnel, the fire protection system in the tunnel was extensively renovated in 2019 and equipped with new technology. These included a ventilation system with flaps in the ceiling to suck in smoke from the tunnel tube and a special lighting system to guide people out of the tunnel to the emergency exit in case of an emergency.
Difficult to schedule appointments with the specialist companies
According to the spokesperson from the press office, faults in the above-mentioned systems must be repaired immediately so that the tunnel remains safe. In addition, the scheduling of repairs had to be coordinated with the specialised companies.Due to the shortage of skilled workers, many companies have only limited availability. That is why some work is done during the day, but in this case, too, efforts are made to schedule it at least for times of day when fewer motorists use the tunnel. However, it is not possible to completely avoid traffic obstructions due to work.
Original text: Anna Müller
Translation: Mareike Graepel
