As of: May 18, 2024 2:00 p.m
On the long Pentecost weekend, travelers must expect traffic jams on the motorways in northern Germany. It is currently particularly full on the A1 and A7.
On the A7 motorway heading north, there are restrictions between Warder and Rendsburg-Büdelsdorf (Schleswig-Holstein) – traffic is at a standstill there. Construction work between the Walsrode triangle and Soltau-Süd (Lower Saxony) is causing traffic congestion towards Hamburg. In addition, things are stalling in the Hamburg area. On the Autobahn 1 in the direction of Bremen there is traffic slowing down in the Osnabrück area, in the opposite direction near Ladbergen there is traffic slowing down after an accident.
Biggest traffic jams expected today and Whit Monday
The General German Automobile Club (ADAC) expects the biggest traffic jams today and on Whit Monday. Because many people used the long Pentecost weekend for a short vacation. According to ADAC, travelers from almost all federal states will be on the road in the coming days. While in Lower Saxony, Bremen and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania only the Tuesday after Whitsun is free of school, other federal states have Whitsun holidays – including Hamburg, Baden-Württemberg, Bavaria, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland and Saxony-Anhalt. In Schleswig-Holstein, however, students have to go back to school on Tuesday.
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It’s likely to get crowded on these streets in the north
- Greater Hamburg area
- Highways to the North and Baltic Seas
- A1 Osnabrück towards Lübeck
- A2 Hanover towards Berlin
- A7 Hamburg towards Flensburg
- A7 Hamburg towards Hanover and Würzburg
- A19 triangle Wittstock/Dosse towards Rostock
- A20 Lübeck towards Rostock
- A24 Berlin towards Hamburg
The A7 and A1 around Hamburg are the most traffic jam-prone motorways
According to ADAC, the A7 north and south of the Elbe Tunnel in Hamburg is particularly prone to traffic jams. A noise protection tunnel around two kilometers long is being built in the Altona area. Many drivers are also likely to make slow progress on the A1 (Bremen-Lübeck): After Hamburg’s overloaded eastern bypass, there is a construction site towards the Baltic Sea near Bargteheide (Stormarn district). Due to bridge construction work, the motorway towards Lübeck is narrowing from three to two lanes, as Autobahn GmbH announced.
At Pansdorf (Ostholstein district), a permanent construction site is once again causing traffic to stall. The A1 (Osnabrück-Bremen) will also be closed in both directions between Holdorf and Lohne/Dinklage (Vechta district) on Sunday night from 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. The reason is the dismantling of a temporary bridge on the B214. Detours are signposted.
Popular travel destinations: Bay of Lübeck and Western Pomerania
According to ADAC, popular travel destinations at Pentecost include the North and Baltic Seas. According to ADAC, the roads to holiday resorts such as Timmendorfer Strand and Scharbeutz on the Bay of Lübeck, Eckernförde and Fehmarn in Schleswig-Holstein, and Rügen and Usedom in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania will be particularly crowded.
Sylt holidaymakers will also need a lot of patience at the loading station in Niebüll (Nordfriesland district). The Alps, the low mountain ranges and neighboring countries are also visited by short vacationers. But excursions to the local recreation areas around the big cities are also likely to have an impact on traffic.
There were already traffic jams on motorways in the north on Friday
Last year, the Friday before Pentecost was one of the busiest days of the year, said ADAC spokesman Tietgen. There was a lot going on on the motorways this year too: for example, traffic was backed up on the A1 in the Bremen area after an accident. That was also the case on the A7 near Waltershof – a Heavy goods transporter got stuck under a bridge in the morning. There was also a traffic jam on the A2 between the Hannover-Ost and Lehrte-Ost intersections for around five kilometers.
ADAC is also expecting traffic jams on Whit Monday
The ADAC had already warned of traffic jams in advance. As a result, on Whit Monday the roads in northern Germany are likely to be full again for return traffic.
Further information
