Farmers’ strike will significantly affect traffic in Bonn and the region
As part of a strike called by the German Farmers’ Association nationwide on Monday, 8 January, the Bonn police are also expecting numerous farmers with their tractors on the streets of the federal city. A protest action has been registered accordingly. Bonn’s public utilities are in contact with the police in this regard, as bus and rail services are also expected to be severely disrupted on this day. Similar events have caused restrictions on roads and railway lines in the past
“We sympathise with the farmers who are exercising their right to draw attention to their concerns with the strike. At the same time, we are doing everything we can to maintain public transport for our passengers in the best possible way under these circumstances,” says Anja Wenmakers, Managing Director of SWB Bus und Bahn, according to a statement from the municipal utilities company. She added: “We cannot rule out the possibility that there will be considerable disruption to traffic. This is because both our drivers and our vehicles could get stuck on the roads due to the blockades,” Wenmakers continues.
SWB Bus und Bahn therefore recommends limiting travelling in and around Bonn to the bare minimum on that day and using home office options.
As the city of Siegburg also announced on Friday, numerous bus routes operated by Rhein-Sieg-Verkehrsgesellschaft that travel to or from Siegburg are also affected by the large-scale strike. Considerable delays and cancellations are to be expected.
Waiting time possible at the motorway slip roads
According to a report from the Bonn police, a tractor convoy will be travelling from Wachtberg towards Bonn on 8 January. According to the report, 100 vehicles have been registered to drive from Wachtberg-Berkum via Bad Godesberg, Bonn city centre and then to Poppelsdorf from 8 a.m. on Monday.
As the organiser of the strike has announced to the assembly authorities, demonstrative actions are also planned in the area of the motorway slip roads to the A61 towards Rheinbach, the A565 near Meckenheim-Merl and the A555 in Bornheim. According to the police, this is expected to cause short-term disruptions to traffic. Short waiting times are to be expected at the motorway slip roads.
Also affected are the L471 and B266 in the area of the slip roads to the A61 in the direction of Cologne and Koblenz, the L158 and Gudenauer Weg on the A565 in the direction of Bonn and Koblenz and Roisdorfer Straße on the A555 near Bornheim. From 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., it will not be possible to access the motorways at these locations. Rescue and emergency vehicles are exempt.
According to a press release from the municipality of Unkel, it can be assumed that, in addition to the motorway slip roads in the Linz and Unkel area, the junctions will also be affected early on Monday morning.
Further convoys of farmers announced
In a second announcement on Friday afternoon, the Bonn police reported that another convoy had registered. According to this, it is to travel from Swisttal via Bornheim to Heinemannstraße in Bonn from 7 am. The two convoys will join up there.
The Bonn police have not ruled out the possibility of further protests in Bonn and the region in the following days. All road users are therefore asked to be prepared for considerable traffic disruption and to avoid the affected areas as far as possible.
Convoys have also been announced in the region on the right bank of the Rhine. From 9 a.m. on Monday, around 100 tractors will be travelling from Hennef in the direction of Troisdorf. From Lohmar, a further 80 vehicles will also be travelling in the direction of Siegburg from 9 am. This was reported by the Rhein-Sieg district police on Friday. The two convoys will join up in Römerstraße in Troisdorf. The Rhein-Sieg district police are also expecting further, unannounced protests from 5 a.m. on Monday. Motorway access roads and junctions are likely to be affected.
For Windeck and Ruppichteroth, the Rhine-Sieg district police are also expecting considerable traffic disruption. They announced this on Sunday. Between 6 a.m. and 12 noon, there could be blockages in Windeck-Rosbach on the roads Obernauer Straße (Siegbrücke bridge there), Hurster Straße, Langenberger Straße, Gierzhagener Straße and Pochestraße. The police are also expecting disruption on the B256 at the entrance to the town.
For Ruppichteroth, farmers have also announced a gathering on the area and road in front of the town hall. According to the police, this involves the B478. The police are also expecting considerable traffic disruption in this area.
Mass protest in Rhineland-Palatinate
More than ten thousand farmers in Rhineland-Palatinate are expected to take part in the week of protests against the federal government’s austerity plans on Monday. This is despite Thursday’s announcement by the federal government to partially reverse the subsidy cuts. By Friday afternoon, the Ministry of the Interior had announced 95 protest actions with around 10,000 participants. “According to the current status, there will be major disruptions for the population. This includes considerable traffic obstructions.”
B9 and B42 also affected in the south
The Koblenz police headquarters responsible for northern Rhineland-Palatinate announced on Saturday evening that at least 1,000 participating vehicles were expected from the early hours of the morning. As the Koblenz police press spokesman Jürgen Fachinger reported in response to a GA enquiry, the main area of the protests will be the greater Koblenz and Neuwied areas. This could also have consequences for commuters from the Westerwald, the Eifel and the southern Rhineland in the direction of Bonn: A convoy of farmers has already announced its arrival on the A3 motorway in the early hours of the morning. In addition, the main roads on the left and right bank of the Rhine, the B9 and B42, will also be affected by strikes.
It is not possible to predict in advance whether the farmers’ protests in the Koblenz-Neuwied area will spread northwards or even join with participants in Bonn and the Rhein-Sieg district. However, Fachinger emphasises that the Koblenz police are always in close contact with their colleagues from North Rhine-Westphalia in this regard.
Bonn police provide information
The convoys will be travelling through these streets:
The first convoy will leave Wachtberg-Berkum at 8 a.m. via the Wachtbergring and L158 towards Bad Godesberg.
The rest of the route: B9, Kennedyallee, Langer Grabenweg, Heinemannstraße, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee, Petra-Kelly-Allee, Franz-Josef-Strauß-Allee, B9 and Adenauerallee. (The convoy stops here. Some of the demonstrators will make their way to the Bonn market square at around 11 a.m.).
Then: Belderberg (B9), Sandkaule, Welschnonnenstraße, Römerstraße, Augustusring, Kaiser-Karl-Ring, Hochstadenring, Viktoriabrücke (B56), Wittelsbacherring, Beethovenplatz, Baumschulallee, Meckenheimer Allee, Clemens-August-Straße, Sebastianstraße. (Second stop and discussions with local politicians).
Afterwards: Sebastianstraße, Alfred-Bucherer-Straße, Endenicher Allee, Beethovenplatz, Wittelsbacherring, Viktoriabrücke, Hochstadenring, Kaiser-Karl-Ring, Kölnstraße, Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz, Belderberg, Adenauerallee, Bundeskanzlerplatz, Willy-Brandt-Allee, Helmut-Kohl-Allee. (End of the assembly).
The second convoy will take the following route from 7am: Dützhofer Straße, Vorgebirgsstraße, L182, L192, L281, L183n, Grootestraße , Justus-von-Liebig-Straße, Brühler Straße, Bornheimer Straße, Heinrich-Böll-Ring, Thomastraße, Am Alten Friedhof, Berliner Platz, Oxfordstraße, Bertha-von-Suttner-Platz, Belderberg, Adenauerallee, Willy-Brandt-Allee, Helmut-Kohl-Allee, Helmut-Schmidt-Platz, Franz-Josef-Strauß-Allee, Petra-Kelly-Allee, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee, Heinemannstraße.
Route of the Hennef convoy: Europaallee, Blankenberger Straße, B478, An der Brölbahn, Frankfurter Straße (B8) to Siegburg, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Platz, Bonner Straße, Konrad-Adenauer-Allee, Bahnweg, Lindenstraße, Isaac-Bürger-Straße, Willy-Brandt-Ring (L332) to Troisdorf, Theodor-Heuss-Allee (B8), Kirchstraße, Frankfurter Straße to Römerstraße.
Route of the Lohmar convoy: Donrather Dreieck (B484), Hauptstraße in the direction of Siegburg, Kirchstraße, Brückenstraße, Eisenweg, Altenrather Straße in the direction of Troisdorf.
(Original text: ga/Translation: Mareike Graepel)