Construction is scheduled to begin in 2025: The planning and all approval procedures for a new motorway rest area on Autobahn 73 in the Coburg district have been completed. The federal Autobahn GmbH has begun preparations for construction, a spokeswoman said upon request. Preparatory work is planned for 2024, and the actual construction work will begin the following year. Two years later, the rest area near the border with Thuringia could be finished.
But the project has critics. The Federation for Nature Conservation (BN) even considered filing a lawsuit, but decided against it because success seemed unlikely. However, the lack of understanding about the plans remains. “In principle, we see no need for the fueling and rest area. At the former border crossing, just a few kilometers away, there is already an existing fueling facility as well as an inn and paved areas that could be designated as a rest area,” said the BN representative for Upper Franconia, Jonas Kaufmann.
The BN also fears that the newly sealed areas of the future rest area will have a negative impact on water runoff during heavy rain. It is hoped that the capacity of the planned retention basin will be sufficient in the event of heavy rain. The project is also wrong from a climate protection perspective because it only increases truck traffic and “motorized individual transport”.
From the Autobahn GmbH’s point of view, the construction of a rest area in the area is necessary. Serviced rest areas are required every 50 to 80 kilometers along motorways, it said. Among other things, this could enable truck drivers to adhere to driving and rest times. As part of the planning, several locations were examined. The area in the Meeder municipal area proved to be the most suitable. In addition, the required land already belonged to Autobahn-GmbH, said the spokeswoman. According to the planning documents, a tank and rest building will only be built in the direction of Suhl, but it will also be accessible from the direction of Nuremberg via a connecting bridge.
How much the construction will cost is still unclear. A cost calculation from 2018 came to around 19 million euros, but construction prices have risen significantly since then. “For this reason, we will update the cost calculation as part of the construction preparation,” said the spokeswoman. Among other things, 117 parking spaces for cars and 64 truck parking spaces are to be created on almost twelve hectares.