Generic image of a bridge for illustration purpose only.
BERLIN: German federal highway company Autobahn GmbH has called for more money for the renovation of ailing highway bridges."Around 3,000 bridges are in an inadequate and insufficient condition," the managing director of Autobahn GmbH, Stephan Krenz, told the Sunday edition of Die Welt newspaper.
That is more than 10 per cent of the total of about 27,000 highway bridges.
Krenz demanded additional funds as well as a change in planning law.
"We need significantly more money for the renovation of highway bridges."
So far, about 1 billion euros (1.18 billion dollars) per year is available, he said.
"We have to become much faster - for that we need a simplified building law for new replacements," said the highway boss.
According to Krenz, the dilapidated infrastructure runs through the entire country.
"The assessment of the condition of bridges has so far been a matter for the federal states - it has been handled differently," he said.
Overall, there is an east-west divide, he said. In the east, many bridges are newer, in the west, the condition is often worse.
Since January, the highway company has been responsible for the planning, construction and operation of all highways in Germany.
The highways had previously belonged to the federal government, while construction and operation were the responsibility of the 16 federal states.
With the new set-up, construction companies are to have the same contact person, tenders and rules are to be standardised, and projects are to be planned from a single source.
Autobahn GmbH is responsible for a highway network measuring 13,000km.
