Four-lane expansion completed: Zschopauer Straße opens to traffic today

After traffic between Südring and Georgistraße had already been running on four lanes since August 2014, the last "bottleneck" was opened today by Mayor Ludwig and the continuous four-lane connection of the B174 to the Südring was established. This important supra-regional transport project will provide the city of Chemnitz and the Erzgebirgskreis district with an efficient connection to the transport network.

The expansion has made Zschopauer Straße fit for the increasing volume of traffic. Up to 25,000 vehicles already use this route every day. Forecasts predict that this figure will rise to around 34,000 per day.

The previous two-lane federal road, mostly without footpaths and cycle paths, was fundamentally upgraded over a length of around 900 metres, widened to four lanes with turning lanes and designed to be largely free of development. To achieve this, the existing property access roads had to be reorganised. This was done via service lanes or rear access roads.

The new B174 now offers continuous routes for pedestrians and cyclists, which has a positive effect on road safety and the efficiency of the road section. At the Georgistraße, Richterweg and Südring junctions, traffic lights have been installed to provide safe crossing facilities. Noise barriers with heights of 4 to 5 metres were also erected along the upgraded main road.

The expansion took place under sometimes difficult conditions, as the extensive construction volume had to be realised while maintaining traffic. With around 25,000 vehicles crossing the construction site per day, the highest demands were placed on the process planning/traffic management, construction work and construction supervision. These were met by the project participants throughout.

The very long and frosty winter of 2012/2013 and the storms in May 2013 significantly hampered the construction work. In conjunction with additional services provided by Telekom, Kabel Deutschland and energy suppliers, there was a delay to the planned construction period. However, thanks to the cooperation of all those involved in the construction work, further optimisations in the construction process were subsequently implemented so that the delay could be minimised. This meant that the road could be opened to traffic in 2014.

Extensive consultations were held with the affected neighbours regarding the redesign of their access areas. In this context, we would like to thank the neighbours for their mostly constructive cooperation and understanding for the necessary restrictions during the construction period. A weekly consultation hour was set up for residents and citizens at the site management office, which was very well utilised. Over 200 consultations took place during the consultation hours, including multiple follow-up appointments and countless other telephone consultations.

The construction project began on 27 August 2012. Prior to this, the site clearance/tree felling took place between January and April 2012. The construction project is scheduled for completion in spring 2015 after the remaining work. Until then, the service road and the pavement between Otto-Thörner-Straße and the development boundary and other property developments still need to be completed.

In the section of the B 174 that has now been opened, short-term traffic restrictions will still be necessary in 2015 to complete the central reservation crossings and the construction of the central reservation at the transition to the federal extension route. This weather-dependent work is expected to be carried out in spring. In addition to this construction contract, the final road markings (2nd quarter of 2015) and the greening between Georgistraße and Bergfrieden (autumn 2015) will also be carried out in 2015.

The project, which is being financed by the state and local authorities, is worth around 20 million euros. The city's own contribution amounts to around 5.2 million euros. The planned costs for the overall construction project will be adhered to, and even undercut for individual lots.

The extensive project also includes the remodelling of the old Zschopauer Straße from Bergfrieden to Hermersdorfer Straße. It has lost its function as a main road due to the construction of the new B174 and now functions as a local road. The road is currently being rebuilt accordingly and will have a one-sided pavement and lighting. This part of the work should also be completed in November 2015.

In the meantime, 81 trees have been planted on the previously completed section of Zschopauer Straße between Südring and Georgistraße on behalf of the Parks Department. There are 61 plane trees right next to the road. Greenery had already been planted on side areas and noise barriers in October. The landscape gardeners also planted eight elms, three lime trees, five rock pears, three ornamental cherries and a beech tree in green areas at road junctions. The fact that the tree planting has only just begun is due to the weather. Due to the mild autumn, trees matured later than usual, meaning that tree nurseries were delayed in delivery.

Last but not least, the planting of the street trees was postponed until now in order to ensure that important asphalt paving work could be carried out in the final construction section of Zschopauer Straße. Drivers using this busy road should not be expected to endure major traffic restrictions due to civil engineering work and tree planting at the same time. A total of 120,000 euros was spent on planning and construction services for the greening work in this first section.

The expansion of Zschopauer Straße in figures:

In addition to the road construction measures, the entire underground infrastructure was renewed and expanded in the extension section. This included

The greening between Südring and Georgistraße has already been completed, with the main services being

The greening between Georgistraße and Bergfrieden will be carried out in autumn 2015 (not part of this construction project).

Further information:

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