After the Straubing city council decided to tear down two tourist information signs on Autobahn 3, there could be a compromise. Discussions were ongoing with the city, said Josef Seebacher, spokesman for Autobahn GmbH, Southern Bavaria branch, on Thursday. The signs pointing to the zoo are no longer in good condition. It is now being examined whether it could only be renewed in parts. But then the city would have to bear the risk that the signs might have to be replaced or removed in five or eight years.
According to Autobahn GmbH, the highway signs installed in 2001 need to be replaced, which would cost around 83,000 euros, Mayor Markus Pannermayr (CSU) told the city council. Alternatively, the two signs would be dismantled by Autobahn GmbH at the city’s expense. That would cost around 10,000 euros. The city councilors decided to demolish it. The foil on the signs – it shows a tiger and a toucan above the lettering “Zoo Straubing” – is no longer easy to read, especially at night, explained Seebacher. That is not the decisive problem, even if there have been complaints from drivers about it.
More importantly, the material is also getting old. UV radiation causes aluminum to become brittle. The signs would be checked regularly and must be safe. That’s why the highway authority approached the city. The signs are also only designed for 15 years. Seebacher justified the costs, which also included complex safety measures for the workers. The Straubing city councilors were of the opinion that the municipal building yard could do the work more cheaply. It’s not that easy, says Seebacher. Among other things, certain certifications are required in order to be allowed to work on a highway. The fact that the prices for the two signs have increased fourteen-fold between 2001 and today is due to current requirements. “Times are changing,” says the speaker. In the past, for example, some things could be done in-house, but today tenders are required.
The new guidelines for tourist signs on motorways come from 2008 and from the Ministry of Transport. According to a spokesman for Autobahn GmbH in Berlin, the first brown sign in Germany was put up in the 1980s. The motif was Teck Castle near Stuttgart. The number of signs nationwide is estimated at around 3,400, and a detailed overview is being developed. According to information, nationwide regulations for the signs have existed since 1988.