Since 6 pm

Danube Valley Bridge is opened to traffic

The new Danube Valley Bridge is now open to traffic(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

To the scissors! Governor Thomas Stelzer, State Councillor for Transport Günther Steinkellner, the managing deputy mayor of Linz Dietmar Prammer, deputy mayor Martin Hajart and Asfinag board director Hartwig Hufnagl cut the opening ribbon on the new Danube crossing today at 12.30 pm. The bridge has been open to traffic since 6 pm.

Five and a half hours later, around 6 p.m., Asfinag announced the opening to traffic on the new Danube Valley Bridge for two lanes and three of the four on- and off-ramps. A maximum of 60 km/h is permitted.

"Bridge crossing" prohibited
Only vehicles are allowed to cross the Danube on site, as the public bridge inspection planned by the "Verkehrswende jetzt!" initiative for Saturday at 10 a.m. was prohibited by the authorities.

Next stage: the tunnel
In the second expansion stage, the "core section" of the A 26 will be implemented from 2026 to 2032. The tunnel will run underneath Freinberg, Ziegeleistraße and Waldeggstraße. Entrances and exits will be constructed at the railroad station and on Waldeggstrasse at the level of the existing west bridge over the railroad tracks. Waldeggstraße itself and its connections to Kudlichstraße, Ziegeleistraße and Kärntnerstraße will remain a traffic-calmed national road - the surface will be redesigned and landscaped. In addition to footpaths, bus lanes and a cycle path will be built.

Closing the gap by 2035
In the third expansion phase (2033 to 2035), Asfinag will rebuild the west bridge as a highway bridge, thus creating the connection to the Mühlkreis highway near the Bindermichl tunnel. The bridge crosses the tracks of the Westbahn without additional supports. The on- and off-ramps to Unionstraße are also being adapted. Once this final phase has been completed, the A 26 Linzer Autobahn will be finished. There is now a continuous highway connection between the B 127 Rohrbacherstraße and the A 7.