The demolition and new construction of the Stadtautobahn bridge in Westend has been postponed by two years. This was announced by the state planning company Deges on Tuesday. Completion of the replacement building for the Westend Bridge is now expected in 2028 at the earliest. Last year, Deges had called 2026. The federal government will bear the costs of 45 million euros. Even 2028 can only be achieved if there are no problems with the building permit and no complaints are delaying the project.
The Westend Bridge, built in 1963, spans the tracks of the S-Bahn and long-distance trains between the Kaiserdamm and Spandauer Damm junctions. This bridge is only available for the north direction, since from here the carriageways of the A100 are together and no longer left and right of the tracks. 90,000 cars drive on the bridge every day, it is ready for demolition.
For safety reasons, restrictions have been in place since 2015, such as a driving ban on heavy goods vehicles and a speed limit of 60. Deges is “good hope that the bridge will hold until we’re done with the new one,” as a planner said. Some kind of alarm system was installed in the bridge in case the situation should deteriorate further.
In this case, there are ready-made plans with additional speed and weight limits. A complete closure such as that at the Elsen Bridge between Treptow and Friedrichshain is considered a Gau for Berlin car traffic. This has been blocked on one side since 2018.
In an information event for residents, Deges gave details in the evening. The new bridge is to be built about 30 meters away from the old one. In this way, the closure times for individual traffic during the three-year construction period can be reduced to a few days and the neighborhood protected from alternative traffic.
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According to the current plans, the S-Bahn and long-distance trains will only be closed on weekends, but “not for weeks or months”. The new bridge will only be 160 meters long, 90 meters less than at present.
There will be no “active” noise protection (in the form of walls) for residents, it said. Some residents will receive passive noise protection, i.e. new windows. According to Deges, however, the noise will be audibly reduced because a particularly smooth surface is to be used.
As is well known, the Rudolf Wissell Bridge and the Funkturm motorway triangle will also have to be renewed in the next few years. Both projects are far more extensive. Two years ago there was talk of a cap over the A100 to reduce noise for local residents.
