The Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan - or rather the Highway Expansion Act derived from it - currently envisages an expansion of the lanes for some sections of the A5 federal highway (BAB) in the urban area of Frankfurt am Main. On Wednesday, June 5, the federal government's Autobahn GmbH published a study examining a ten-lane expansion between Frankfurter Kreuz and the Friedberg junction, which goes beyond the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan.
This intention to expand the motorway in conjunction with the ongoing lack of clarity regarding effective noise protection is currently causing considerable incomprehension and anger in the urban community - both among those living directly next to the BAB 5 and in urban politics.
The resolution of the city council (§ 2845 of February 2, 2023) states:
"Irrespective of the results of a feasibility study, the ten-lane expansion of the A5 is rejected." The resolution can be found online at Copy of resolution § 2845 on submission OA 280 2022 (frankfurt.de).
Head of Mobility Wolfgang Siefert explains the City of Frankfurt's opposition to the federal government's expansion plans. The city's coalition agreement between the Greens, SPD, FDP and Volt also clearly rejects the order to expand the BAB 5: "In principle, we reject the further expansion of freeways in Frankfurt [...]. The transition from the de facto to the formal 8-lane A 5 must be combined with the urgently required noise protection for the neighboring residential areas."
"The City of Frankfurt expects the Federal Ministry of Transport to cancel the measure as part of the review of the requirements plan and not to pursue it further in terms of planning," says Siefert. "The freeway network in the Rhine-Main region is one of the densest in the world and makes a major contribution to bundling motor vehicle traffic in the conurbation. At the same time, however, the freeways also represent an extraordinary burden for the densely populated areas they intersect." The City of Frankfurt has already expressed its criticism of this in previous drafting procedures for the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan.
"The accessibility of the core city of Frankfurt by motor vehicle is limited, as the municipal road network is also limited. This means that more vehicles will not be able to enter the city via the downstream roads, no matter how extensively the highways are expanded," explains Heiko Nickel, Head of Strategic Transport Planning in the Mobility Department.
