Hamburg has seen an increase in accidents caused by damaged roads. The CDU blames the red-green transport policy and makes a demand.
An increasing number of accidents in Hamburg are being caused by damage to the asphalt. By the end of May, 146 such accidents had already been counted in the Hanseatic city. This comes from the Senate’s response to a written small inquiry by CDU parliamentary group chairman Dennis Thering. Compared to the previous year, the numbers in the same period have increased fivefold.
According to the Senate, 14 people were injured in such accidents this year, two of them seriously. “The number of accidents in which road damage plays a role has exploded this year,” Thering told the German Press Agency (dpa).
Damage costs amount to 1.3 million euros
A similar trend can be seen in the resulting damage costs. “In the first five months of 2024, these were not only higher than in the entire period from 2019 to 2022, but at around 1.3 million euros, 600 percent higher than the previous year.”
Thering blamed the red-green transport policy for the situation. The Senate, however, seems to see it differently. With a systematic maintenance management for Hamburg’s roads, the Senate pursues “the long-term goal of improving and permanently maintaining a good road condition,” writes the Senate.
In recent years, the intensification of maintenance measures and various reconstruction and expansion programs for the main roads have eliminated a backlog of repairs and achieved a good condition level.
Wet and cold winter worsens damage
According to the Senate, 744 lane kilometers were repaired from 2020 to 2023. However, damage continues to occur, especially on sections that have not yet been renovated. “These occur mainly on sections that have already been damaged, mostly in connection with heavy traffic and heavy goods traffic,” it said.
In addition, last winter, with wet and cold weather and numerous frost-thaw cycles, “led to an increase in new potholes in already damaged areas of the road surface.” These presented significant challenges for the locally responsible road construction offices.
CDU calls for immediate pothole repair program
Thering criticized that “many road damages do not even have a timeline for repair.” As a result, most road damages remain a safety risk for many months.
The condition of the roads plays a crucial role in traffic safety. “The Senate must now quickly launch an immediate program to eliminate all potholes, and in a way that doesn’t see everything torn up again next winter,” he demanded.
