A7 in Hamburg: Finally eight lanes – more space for traffic!

A7 in Hamburg: Finally eight lanes – more space for traffic!

As of today, the A7 in the south of Hamburg is finally accessible with eight lanes! The newly opened section between the Hamburg-Hafen motorway junction and the Hamburg-Heimfeld junction stretches for almost four kilometers and now offers four lanes in each direction. The construction period took around four and a half years, a project that the Hamburg boss of DEGES, Sebastian Haß, proudly describes as having been completed on time. This means that the A7, one of the most important north-south axes in Germany, should be significantly relieved in order to be able to flow better and at the same time reduce traffic restrictions.

Opening this route was not without challenges. Before the opening, there were long traffic jams due to a weekend closure between Hamburg-Stellingen and Hamburg-Heimfeld. This was lifted on Sunday evening and the new lanes are now open to traffic. The expansion envisages that the A7 will in future provide eight lanes all the way to the state border of Schleswig-Holstein, which could significantly improve the traffic situation. Further sections of the route are also being planned and are expected to be completed by the end of next year.

Construction challenges

A significant step in this construction project is the construction of the new HH-Hafen motorway junction, which is also in full swing. DEGES reports that the steel construction for the new “high-flyer” – a connecting ramp from the A26 to the A7 – has already been completed. The concreting of the caps and the road structure are currently being carried out. However, in order to fully open the eight-lane A7, the southbound carriageway must be completely demarcated and remarked, which will result in corresponding closures.

From Friday, June 13th, there will be a complete closure of the A7 in the southbound lane between Hamburg-Stellingen and Hamburg-Heimfeld, which will last until Monday, June 16th. This measure is important in order to carry out the last-mentioned marking work. During the diversion phase, road users should be shown the way using existing network control systems and LED signage in order to keep traffic in the inner-city area low.

Was that it with the expansion?

These measures to improve the A7 also provide an outlook for future projects in the region. In particular, the eight-lane expansion of the A1 between the Hamburg-Südost motorway triangle and the Hamburg-Harburg junction is planned. This section, which is part of Germany's third-longest motorway, also shows the need to respond to increasing traffic demand - an increase of up to 160,000 vehicles per day is predicted by 2030.

The expansion is part of the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan 2030 and is classified as an “urgent need”. Future work will not only include expanding the lanes, but also noise protection measures, which will particularly benefit quiet living and working in the immediate vicinity of the motorway.

Overall, the expansion of the A7 and the adjacent projects is seen as a big step in the right direction to sustainably improve traffic in the Hamburg metropolitan region. We can only hope that drivers will soon be able to benefit from the advantages of these measures!

For more information on traffic conditions and construction, visit NDR, Autobahn.de and DEGES.