The Autobahn 45 between the eastern Ruhr area and Frankfurt has to remain completely closed at Lüdenscheid for another three to four months due to a bridge damage.
For the clearance of at least car traffic, an emergency reinforcement must be installed by then, as the federal Autobahn GmbH responsible announced on Wednesday.
Parallel to the work, a barrier system is to be built on the so-called Sauerland line to prevent heavy goods traffic from crossing the bridge in the future.
There are comparable systems in the Rhineland.
A barrier system is currently being installed on the A43 between Herne and Recklinghausen.
During an inspection during the course of the new construction planning for the bridge, the damage was discovered last week on Wednesday.
The experts found deformations in a steel girder.
Traffic was stopped immediately on Thursday.
Upon further investigation, the engineers found further damage.
The federal autobahn GmbH in charge will inform about the further planning on Thursday afternoon at a press conference.
In the transport committee of the North Rhine-Westphalian state parliament, Elfriede Sauerwein-Braksiek, director of the Westphalia branch, gave the MPs information about the damage on Wednesday.
An expert described that the deformation of one of the damages discovered was between 12 and 17 millimeters.
And thus three times higher than the permissible deformation of 5 millimeters.
A weld seam is massively stressed by the damage.
"It bangs and then it's downstairs"
The engineer spoke of an "unstable state of equilibrium".
And the damage would not slowly increase, but would lead to “sudden failure.
It bangs and then it's downstairs, "said the expert in the state parliament.
Such a sudden failure would not be foreseeable.
The A45 is an important axis from the Ruhr area to southern Germany in the direction of Frankfurt.
Bridges have been renovated or built on the route for years.
The new closure is part of a long series of problem cases in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Several bridges over the Rhine are in disrepair.
Here the traffic is reduced and the heavy goods traffic is diverted partly with barriers.
The full closure at Lüdenscheid has caused chaotic conditions on the diversion routes.
Residents complain about the great burden.
Nationwide, traffic is being diverted from Frankfurt in the direction of Cologne and Kassel.
On the A1 (Cologne-Bremen), the diversions start at the Westhofener Kreuz near Dortmund.
"We are doing everything to get the car traffic back on the bridge and thus at least create a slight relief for the region," said Sauerwein-Braksiek according to the announcement.