Traffic gridlock in Wiesbaden: the blasting of the Salzbachtal bridge is broadcast live

On November 6th at 12 noon, the time has come: Then the Salzbachtalbrücke in Wiesbaden will be blown up. For safety reasons, there will be no possibility for those interested to watch the spectacle on that Saturday. “Stay at home” is the joint appeal from the city, police and Autobahn GmbH, because due to the extensive cordon it is not possible to see the demolition. A safety distance of 250 meters will be set up around the bridge, it said on Friday. Autobahn GmbH offers a live broadcast so that people can still see the spectacular action.

From 11 a.m. onwards, interested parties can watch the demolition on the YouTube channel “Die Autobahn”, but also on FAZ.NET.

To do this, several camera drones fly over the bridge and film the explosion.

"There are no viewpoints and it is forbidden to approach the bridge on the day of the demolition," warns the police, who will use thermal imaging cameras to check whether everyone is obeying the rules.

Onlookers who disrupt the work must expect the consequences, announced the police.

On November 6th and 7th, there will also be a flight ban for private drones within 250 meters of the bridge from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Spacious barriers

From Friday to Sunday around the day of the demolition, numerous streets and residential areas in the area are cordoned off.

The federal highway 263 including the “bypass” between Mainzer Straße Höhe Spelzmühlweg and Amöneburger Kreisel will be closed.

Traffic on the A66 in the direction of Rüdesheim will be diverted to the B455 at the Erbenheim exit.

The diversions are signposted.

Drivers should avoid Mainzer Straße, Amöneburger Kreisel and the B263 and avoid them widely.

If you have any questions, the city will switch a citizen phone from Thursday, November 4th to Saturday, November 6th, which can be reached at 0611/316041.

The phone is manned on Thursday from 7.45 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Friday until 6 p.m. and on Saturday from 6.45 a.m. until the end of the campaign.

Further information is available at

The people who live near the bridge will be brought to safety during the demolition.

According to information from Hans-Peter Erkel, head of the city police, 140 people have to leave their homes, which are within a 250-meter radius around the bridge.

These include buildings on Hüglerstraße in the Biebrich district, the Hammermühle building, the Wiesbaden animal shelter, a house on Im Mühltal street, the car repair shops on Mainzer Straße and other businesses.

According to Erkel, he does not expect any difficulties with the evacuation, which is due to start at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning, because most of the residents would be staying with friends and relatives.

In addition, the number of people who have to leave their homes is manageable.

Warnings about fine dust pollution for residents

At 8 a.m., the city and state police start making loudspeaker announcements to inform the people. In previous evacuations, for example to defuse World War II bombs, considerably more Wiesbaden residents would have had to be brought to safety, said Erkel. The evacuation should be completed by 11 a.m. If the blasting technicians manage to keep to the schedule, the citizens are allowed to return to their homes and businesses around 2.30 p.m.

Uli Brandner, owner of the hammer mill, sees it differently. “There will be a considerable amount of fine dust pollution that will fall on the roofs and gardens,” he predicts and warns of health risks for residents. According to Brandner, there is a risk that cement quartzite and asbestos could be contained in the dust. Until 2005, asbestos was still used in deeper layers in road construction, he said on Friday when asked. The Salzbachtal Bridge was built in 1963. Although there is an expert opinion from the Autobahn GmbH, he is not allowed to see it despite multiple inquiries. Brandner fears that this report only examined the superficial covering of the bridge and therefore came to the conclusion that it did not contain asbestos.

The hammer mill, built in 1690, is only 88 meters from the bridge.

Numerous families with 17 children live in 20 apartments.

"After the explosion, the road surface of the north bridge comes up to 60 meters from my outer wall," said Brandner, who says he has the blasting concept.

For this reason alone, a massive development of fine dust must be expected around his building but also in the adjacent residential area on Hüglerstraße.

Brandner demands thorough measurements of the air pollution before and after the blast.