Construction work for the A26 Autobahn route for Hamburg in Germany has been halted. This follows a ruling by the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig and work on the planned A26-East harbour Autobahn has been stopped on environmental grounds. This follows a lawsuit by the environmental bodies NABU and BUND Hamburg.
The route of the A26 East stretch facing the legal action runs between Moorburg and Stillhorn. The issue is that the alignment runs through moorland areas. But NABU has suggested that the existing main port route could be upgraded instead of building the new A26.
The issue is of economic importance to Hamburg as its port is amongst the busiest in Europe. The A26 route was also intended to provide additional connection between the A1 in the west of the city and the A7 in the east of the city, which are two of the busiest Autobahn routes in Germany. Finding a solution quickly will be of major importance to transport and trade for the city.
