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December 2014 2010-2276

Table of contents

Chapter 1. Description of the Danish-German Transport Commission ...... 2

Update of interim report Chapter 2. Description of the cross-border infrastructure and transport structure in the Corridor ...... 4 ...... 5 ...... 12

Chapter 3. Development in traffic in the Jutland corridor from 2000 to today. Figures and facts ...... 16

Denmark ...... 16 Germany ...... 24

Chapter 4. Current infrastructure programmes in Denmark and Germany - Focusing on the Jutland corridor ...... 29

Denmark ...... 29 Germany ...... 31

Chapter 5. Prioritised projects by the Danish-German Transport Commission ...... 35

Chapter 6. Recommendations ...... 37

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Chapter 1. Description of the Danish-German Transport Commission

The Danish-German Transport Commission was founded on July 5, 2011. Its objective is to analyse cross-border traffic with a special focus on the Jutland Corridor and to give recommendations for improving infrastructure and the transport economy.

Membership: 12 members, Denmark and Germany are equally represented by 6 members each

Representatives from Denmark Germany TRM (Danish Ministry of Transport) 2 Development Council South-Jutland 2 Danish Chamber of Commerce (Dansk 1 Erhverv) Confederation of Danish Industry 1 MWVAT (Schleswig-Holstein MOT) 2 BMVI (Federal German MOT) 1 chamber of Commerce 1 Chamber of Commerce and Industry 1 Schleswig-Holstein WiREG (Business Development 1 Corporation Schleswig-)

Additional experts may be invited depending on demand and/or subject.

The German Federal MOT is not a de facto permanent member of the Commission, it only participates when issues of federal German or European policy are addressed. In case the Federal German MOT is not taking part, its seat is taken by the Schleswig-Holstein MOT so as to ensure parity between the Danish and the German members. To date, the Federal German MOT only took part once.

The Transport Commission has a consultative function; it will give recommendations only. The recommendations are made by consensus and must be unanimous. The projects described in this report vary by their stage of investigation and are thus not at the same analytical level. Furthermore some projects focus on the construction side while others focus on the operation side of transport initiatives. It is clear that for projects focusing on the operation of transport it will be necessary to take commercial perspectives into account. Finally, it must be emphasised that the decision making process for concrete projects takes place outside of the work of the commission at ministerial level on the Danish/German side respectively.

The following procedural decisions were taken at the inaugural meeting on July 5, 2011: - The chair shall alternate between Denmark and Germany every six months. - There shall be two meetings within a period of six months.

To date, the Transport Commission has convened 8 times and has mainly addressed the following subjects: - Rail projects in Denmark, railway lines in Denmark - Study on a fixed link between Fyn and

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- Presentation of the German-Danish Business Forum - A joint German-Danish train station - Eco-Combi vehicles (long commercial vehicles) - Sønderborg binational airport - The role of Danish ports in the cross-border region, ports in Schleswig-Holstein - Expert report on “High Speed Train in the Jutland Corridor” - Study about Padborg as an intermodal terminal - Combined transport terminal Neumünster - European Train Control System (ETCS) on the line between Niebüll and Tønder - Extension of the motorway A7 - Situation of the high across at Rade - Cabotage in long-distance freight traffic - Air freight - Discussion of the joint interim report on Jan. 1, 2013 - Proposals for (cross-border) transport projects made by stakeholders.

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Update of the “Interim report” from the commission

Chapter 2. Description of the cross-border infrastructure and transport structure in the Jutland Corridor

The Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of Denmark have a common land border that divides the Cimbrian peninsula, including Jutland and Schleswig - Holstein, in an east west direction. Both states are connected by a network of roads and railway lines in a north south direction through the so-called Jutland Corridor.

This chapter describes the existing transport infrastructure, the development of the different transport carriers since the year 2000 as well as the concrete plans for expansion measures and cross-border projects in the Jutland Corridor.

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Denmark

2.1 Roads

The trunk road network - or the national road network in Denmark - plays a central role when it comes to the flow of traffic. The trunk road network is the backbone of the key international transport corridors throughout Denmark and helps ensure efficient traffic flows between and the rest of the continent.

The backbone of the road network is made up of the so-called capital "H", i.e. roads between Frederikshavn and Danish-German border, between Køge and Esbjerg and between Elsinore and Rødby. See map 2.1.1. The capital “H” provides gateways to Denmark’s neighbours most notably Germany, Sweden, Norway and the United Kingdom

Map 2.1.1 The capital “H”

Despite the fact that the trunk road network only makes up approximately 5 per cent of the total public road network in Denmark, approximately 45 per cent of all vehicle kilometres in Denmark are driven on the trunk road network.

The southern part of Jutland is part of the region “Southern Denmark”. In this region there are located two motorways, which are part of the capital “H”, namely the east-west oriented Esbjergmotorvejen (E20) between Lillebælt and Esbjerg and the north-south Sønderjyske motorway (E45) between

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Kolding to the north and the Danish-German border at Frøslev to the south. South of the border to Germany E45 continues as A7.

In the western part of Jutland there is one trunk road (Route 11) between Esbjergmotorvejen to the north and the Danish-German border south of Tønder and a number of trunk roads across the region. south of the Danish-German border Route 11 continues as B5.

A new motorway – Kliplev-Sønderborg – between Sønderjyske motorway to the West and Sønderborg to the East opened in 2011. The 25 km 4 motorway was carried out as a Public Private Partnership (PPP). The Kliplev-Sønderborg motorway was the first Danish motorway carried out as a PPP.

Map 2.1.2 shows the trunk roads in the southern part of Jutland; map 2.1.3 shows the number of vehicles on the trunk roads in the southern part of Jutland and Table 2.1.1 shows different road types on the trunk road network in the southern part of Jutland.

Map 2.1.2 Trunk roads in the southern part of Jutland

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Map 2.1.3 Annual average daily traffic on the trunk roads in 2013 (all vehicles) in the southern part of Jutland

As seen on the map the traffic load is highest on the Sønderjyske motorway (E45) between and the Danish-German border at Frøslev.

Table 2.1.1 Different road types on the trunk road network in the southern part of Jutland

Road type Km Road Amount (pct.)

Motorway 216 29

Expressway 114 15

Other trunk roads 414 56

Total 744 100

Regarding trunk roads there are two border crossings between Denmark and Germany, namely the crossing at Sæd and the crossing at Frøslev. Table 2.1.2 shows the number of vehicles crossing the border stations.

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Table 2.1.2 Number of vehicles passing the Danish-German border on a trunk road (2013)

Border station Number of vehicles

Sæd 5.600

Frøslev 16.500

2.2 Railway

There are two railway lines crossing the Danish-German border: Niebüll-Tønder and Padborg- . The railway line between Niebüll and Tønder is single tracked and with a speed limit of 100 km/h. The line between Padborg-Fredericia is double-tracked except from Vamdrup to Vojens and from Padborg to Tinglev. The speed limit is 180 km/h in some parts of the railway with the lowest speed limit from Padborg to Tinglev being 120 km/h.

Map 2.2.1 with 2011-data from www.bane.dk

The railway between Padborg-Fredericia is part of the Scandinavian . The section is an important part of the Danish railway network, linking the western, northern and southern parts of Denmark with Germany.

The single track section between Vamdrup and Vojens of 20 km will be upgraded to double track by the end of 2015. This will eliminate the bottleneck problems currently limiting the capacity of the rail line north of Tinglev. The upgrade project received EU TEN-T funding in 2012 to support the development of the EU infrastructure. After the upgrade of the section, Tinglev-Padborg will be the last single track

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section left to be upgraded. In the Agreement on a Modern Railway (Aftale om en moderne jernbane) from 22. October 2009 it was agreed to construct a double track on the rail line Tinglev-Padborg.1

In 2012 it was decided to electrify the railway between Esbjerg and Lunderskov. This is the first step towards electrification of the most important Danish rail lines. The electrification will provide a modern, cheaper, more stable and environment friendly railway.

2.3 Ports and shipping

Denmark is home to approximately 130 sea ports that function as important nodal points in the transport chain connecting the Danish economy to neighbouring markets.

In the south Jutland region Danish ports facilitate a wide array of services ranging from frequent feeder services to German ports, short sea shipping of roll-on-roll-off units and transport of oil, gas and dry bulk. In recent years ports on the West Coast of Denmark have furthermore carried out investment programmes to facilitate the growth in the wind energy sector and the off-shore wind farms in the and specifically.

1 Ministry of Transport: Aftaler om En grøn transportpolitik, 2009.

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Figure 2.3.1: Freight volumes between South Jutland ports and Germany in 2013 (1000 t) 1600

1400

1200

1000

800

600

400

200

0 Havn Esbjerg Havn Fredericia Havn Kolding Havn

Source: Statistics Denmark

The most prominent port in the South Jutland region in terms of container freight to/from Germany is the port of Fredericia. As a feeder port to the five weekly connections operate the route. The prominence of the Port of Fredericia is visualised in fig. 2.3.1 and in 2013 approximately 1400 tonnes of goods were transported between the Port of Fredericia and German ports.

The Port of Esbjerg - the second of the larger ports in the South Jutland region - has a significantly smaller exchange of goods with German ports.

In general the port of Esbjerg handled almost 2,000 tonnes of goods in 2013 and represents a major connecting point for Danish foreign trade. Even though the volume of freight between Esbjerg and German ports remains marginal, the port of Esbjerg offers an efficient supplement to the Port of Hamburg in terms of short sea shipping access to destinations in the United Kingdom and on the European continent – to the benefit for the border region at large.

The ports of Rømø and Esbjerg have taken a proactive approach to accommodate the growing market for wind energy. While Esbjerg has focussed on the shipping of wind turbines components from Danish production facilities and on supplying services to Danish off shore wind farms, the port of Rømø focusses on supplying services to German off shore wind farms. Both ports are distinguished by their ability to deliver adequate port depths in the otherwise shallow waters of the Wadden Sea.

Finally, a number of small and medium sized ports also contribute to the supply of easy and efficient access to waterborne transport in the borderland region. The ports of Kolding and Aabenraa offer modern reception facilities and are important to the region for the supply of building materials, foodstuff and other forms of dry bulk.

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2.4 Aviation

Civil aviation in the EU, including domestic routes, is based on an internal market with free access for all carriers in all EU/EEA member states. The companies decide which routes they will serve based on their commercial considerations.

Domestic scheduled civil aviation in Denmark is concentrated to at present six routes to and from Airport. Two of the routes serve : Billund, 130 km from the German border, and Sønderborg, 50 km from the border.

In 2013 approximately 135.000 passengers travelled between and and approximately 41.000 passengers travelled between Sønderborg Airport and Copenhagen Airport.

There are at present three routes linking Southern Jutland with Germany: between Billund and Frankfurt, Munich and Düsseldorf.

The numbers of passengers from Billund and the German destinations are shown in table 2.4.1

Table 2.4.1. Numbers of passengers from Billund Airport to German destinations. Route Passengers, 2013

Billund – Frankfurt 192.000

Billund – München 14.000

Billund –Düsseldorf 9.000

Of the larger airports in Southern Jutland, Esbjerg Airport (80 km. from the border) has only routes to Aberdeen and Stavanger and Vojens Airport (50 km. from the border) has no routes at all.

General aviation is a flexible and important means of transport for most of the regions greater companies. From Billund Airport there are flights to a large number of airports - especially in Europe. From both Billund Airport and Sønderborg Airport there are a considerable number of flights to Copenhagen Airport, and from Copenhagen there are a large number of routes to intra- and extra- European destinations. Esbjerg Airport is essential for especially the off-shore industry.

Domestic flight routes between Danish and international airports can help to ensure a high level of regional accessibility and will contribute to regional development, especially for remote areas where travel time to Copenhagen is considerably shorter by plane than by train and ferry. Also the airports become essential to the companies in relation to commercial interaction and connectivity and thereby a key element when securing development and economic growth in the regions.

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Germany

2.5. Roads

A 7 motorway The most important road connection between the Scandinavian countries and Continental Europe is the A7 motorway (European road E 45), which leads in a north south direction through all of Germany up to Frederikshavn in the north of Denmark. In Schleswig-Holstein, the A 7 follows the route of the historical “oxen trail”. The Schleswig-Holstein part of the motorway is 146 kilometres long, has four and a hard shoulder as required by German highway standards. The hard shoulders between the exits Hamburg-Schnelsen-Nord and Kaltenkirchen and between Neumünster-Süd and the three-way interchange Bordesholm can be used in cases of a high volume of traffic. The A 7 motorway crosses Kiel Canal near Rendsburg on the Rader Bridge, a viaduct measuring 1.5 kilometres in length.

The state capital of Kiel is connected to the A 7 by the A 215 motorway at the three-way interchange “Bordesholm” and by the A 210 at the four-way interchange Rendsburg. The A 7 is connected with several federal highways which mainly run in an east west direction and partly in a north south direction. In the city of Hamburg, the A 7 has mostly 6 lanes and 8 lanes in front of the Tunnel. The three-way interchange “Hamburg-Nordwest” in the city of Hamburg connects the A 7 and the A 23 coming from Heide.

As a principal thoroughfare the A 7 absorbs a major share of the traffic running in north- south direction with considerable transit traffic from and to Denmark and/or Scandinavia. With the completion of the Store Bælt Link in 1997, the traffic has partially shifted from the “” to the A 7. There is also an increase in commuter traffic mainly in direction to and from Hamburg, meaning that the volume of traffic keeps growing close to Hamburg. The highest volume of traffic is close to the Elbe Tunnel with an average of 150,000 vehicles per day. Because of the traffic jams that occur very often, the Elbe Tunnel is getting to be more of a bottleneck than ever before.

The A 7 is especially important for the mobility of the people from Schleswig-Holstein. For many businesses in Schleswig-Holstein, the A 7 is the most important transport link to the relevant markets, which are often far away. Also for this reason it is especially important that the efficiency of the A 7 be preserved by needs-oriented extension projects. Concrete projects plans are described in Chapter 4.1.

Rader Bridge Reconstruction work done on the bridge piers in July 2013 brought to light previously unforeseeable extensive damage to the bridge with substantial static impact. After consultation of a testing engineer traffic restrictions needed to be imposed at short notice so as not to risk further damage to the load- bearing capacity of the bridge: - closure of the bridge for vehicles over 7.5 t in both directions - narrowing of lanes in both directions to single-lane operation - permanent monitoring of the “trouble spot”

These traffic restrictions had serious consequences, especially for the north- and south-bound traffic and thus for destinations in the northern part of Schleswig-Holstein and in Denmark.

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The damaged bridge piers were repaired immediately so that the high-level bridge at Rade could reopened for two-lane traffic in both directions on Nov. 11, 2013. For vehicles exceeding 7.5 t however, the following restrictions are still in place: - speed limit of 60 km/h for trucks - ban on overtaking for trucks and a minimum distance of 25 m (also in traffic jams) - closure of both hard shoulders still effective - maximum load of 84 t for (approved) heavy haulages still effective

Originally the Rader Bridge had an operating life expectancy of 80 to 100 years. A static recalculation done in mid-2014 resulted in a remaining useful life of only 12 years. A timely replacement, i.e. a new construction crossing Kiel Canal is of utmost priority.

A 23 motorway and B 5 federal highway In the west of Schleswig-Holstein the most important transport routes are the B 5 federal highway and - from Heide to Hamburg - the A 23 motorway, which connect the west coast region. The B 5 crosses the German-Danish border north of Süderlügum. It is then called European road E 11 and runs via Esbjerg to the north of Jutland up to Aalborg. The volume of traffic towards Hamburg is increasing considerably on the B 5 and A 23, respectively, as will be shown in the following chapter. Concrete expansion projects are described in Chapter 4.1.

A 20 motorway The A 20 motorway is gradually being built from east to west in order to create a highly competitive east-west main thoroughfare - from Poland to the Netherlands. The A 20 will be connected with the A 21 motorway near Bad Segeberg, with the A 7 near Bad Bramstedt and with the A 23 near Hohenfelde. A fixed link across the river Elbe is planned near Glücksburg and a connection with the A 26 and the A 27 in . This project including the fixed link across the river Elbe has been included as an urgent priority in the German Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan.

With the final extension of the A 20 it will be possible to circuit and decongest the busy traffic hub of Hamburg and to improve the connection to the less developed west coast of Schleswig-Holstein. At that point in time, the A 20 will also be an attractive transport route for the transit traffic running to and from Denmark.

There is an agreement in the coalition contract of the political parties forming the government of Schleswig-Holstein that the A 20 will be extended up to the A 7 in this legislative period (until 2017). The sections west of the A 7 including the fixed link across the river Elbe will be planned nonetheless.

2.6. Railway In Schleswig-Holstein the rail network is traditionally orientated towards the railway hub of Hamburg, with the main lines running to Sylt ("marsh railway-line "), Flensburg ("Jutland-line"), Kiel, Lübeck and ("Vogelfluglinie"). This rail network is supplemented by cross-country routes. In the Jutland Corridor, these are the following lines: Flensburg-Kiel, Husum-Jübek-Kiel, Kiel-Lübeck, Heide- Neumünster-Bad Oldesloe and Niebüll-Tønder and - with a more regional character - the lines Niebüll- Dagebüll, Husum-Bad St. Peter Ording and Heide-Büsum. In the Hamburg Metropolitan Region the lines Hamburg-Eidelstedt, Ulzburg-Norderstedt and Elmshorn-Henstedt-Ulzburg of the AKN Eisenbahn AG as well as the suburban rail lines (S-Bahnen) to

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Wedel and Aumühle play an important role in commuter traffic. Besides, there are rail networks for the transport of cargo in Kiel, Lübeck and Brunsbüttel.

In the Jutland Corridor international passenger and cargo transport mainly runs on the line of the same name. The Jutland-line running to Hamburg via Flensburg, Schleswig, Rendsburg and Neumünster is double-tracked, electrified and constructed for a speed of 160 km/h. Near Rendsburg, the railway crosses Kiel Canal on a high-level bridge which was built in 1913. At present, the bridge is undergoing thorough restoration and will be dimensioned for bigger weight charges (load for each wheel of 22.5 tons). Until completion, which is planned for the year 2016, the bridge is a bottleneck because of the speed and weight limitations. Once the bridge has been modernized, it can be crossed by 2 trains at the same time and is expected to have an additional operating life of at least 30 years.

The Jutland-line and the marsh railway-line converge in Elmshorn. From Elmshorn and/or Pinneberg the route is complemented with regional railway and suburban traffic. With the introduction of the Store Bælt-Link in 1997, all of the cargo haulage by rail was shifted to the Jutland-line. This track section has nearly reached the limits of its capacity. However, it is expected that the introduction of the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link will shift parts of the transit activities from the Jutland-line back to the Vogelfluglinie and thus relieve the Jutland-line somewhat.

The Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan (“Bundesverkehrswegeplan” - BVWP) of 2003 includes a three-tracked extension of the rail system between Elmshorn and Pinneberg as a so-called urgent need (“Vordringlichen Bedarf”). In autumn 2010, a re-evaluation of the planned projects was undertaken with the result that the above-mentioned extension is no longer necessary because of the anticipated relief provided by the completion of the Fehmarnbelt Fixed Link. As an alternative to a conventional three-tracked extension, the State of Schleswig-Holstein has suggested an improvement of the suburban connections in this section, which would also free up capacity on the main track. This project was submitted for the 2015 BVWP.

On the whole, the railway hub of Hamburg is a bottleneck, especially for the rail traffic running in southern direction. The problem was studied by the BMVBS (especially in a report about the “Development and assessment of a concept for the railway hub Hamburg of March 2009”). The report recommends that the rail connections to the south be extended for the transport of containers and for suburban passenger trains.

The marsh railway-line leading from Hamburg to Sylt is mainly double-tracked except for a few one- tracked sections, designed for a speed of 140 km/h and electrified from Hamburg to Itzehoe. In Niebüll, the marsh line is connected with the Danish railroad network via Tønder and Esbjerg by the privately owned company Norddeutsche Eisenbahngesellschaft Niebüll GmbH (neg). A 17.7 km long, single- tracked and non-electrified section between Niebüll and Tønder that had been closed down in 1980 was reactivated in 1997. A few years ago, extensive reconstruction work was done on the track with financial support from the State of Schleswig-Holstein.

2.7. Ports and shipping There are two regular ferry services between Germany and Denmark. On the one hand, there is the so- called “Vogelfluglinie” between the ports of and Rödby and, on the other, there is a ferry- connection between the ports of List on the island of Sylt and Havneby on the island of Rømø. As this

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report focuses exclusively on the Jutland Corridor only the line between List and Havneby will be discussed. For individual transport from the mainland this 16-km-long ferry connection, inaugurated in 1963, represents a popular alternative to the rail link via the Hindenburg-damm. The ferry service is operated by Syltfahre.de, an enterprise of the FRS (Förde Reederei Seetouristik), using a double-ended ferry called SyltExpress. The crossing takes approx. 35-40 minutes.

This report does not discuss Kiel Canal (NOK). Whereas the NOK plays a preeminent role as an international waterway in the transport of cargo into the entire region, largely to and from the Port of Hamburg, it does not have a special function for the cross-border transport of goods in the Jutland Corridor.

2.8. Air traffic The airfield Flensburg-Schäferhaus is the only airfield with a cross-border function in the Schleswig- Holstein part of the Jutland Corridor. Due to its location near the border it is also used by Danish customers. Already founded in 1910, the airfield has three runways altogether. One of them, made of bitumen, has a length of 1.580 m and a maximum weight-bearing capacity of 30 t. For this reason, the airfield is well suited for business charter flights.

Air-charter enterprises offering commercial and private flights as well as sightseeing flights are located in the vicinity of the airfield. Moreover, Germany’s largest seaplane enterprise has its seat in Flensburg. Flight schools offer lessons for flying airplanes, gliders, ultra-light planes and seaplanes as well as for parachuting. Aerial advertisement and hangar places are offered. Besides, an aviation-technical company (servicing and repair of motorized aircraft) is located on the airfield as well. The fuelling facilities provided offer AVGAS 100 LL for piston engines as well as jet A 1 (kerosene) for turboprop aircraft and jet engines. The water aerodrome Flensburg-Sonwik on Flensburg is also nearby.

Beyond the borders of Schleswig-Holstein, the airport at Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel (Hamburg Airport) is interesting also for Danish travellers. It offers a huge number of German and European destinations as well as some intercontinental connections.

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Chapter 3. Development in traffic in the Jutland corridor from 2000 to today. Figures and facts

This chapter has its focus on the development in traffic in the Jutland corridor within the last decade. The chapter describes the development in Denmark and Germany respectively.

Denmark:

3.1 Roads

Developments in traffic concerning roads can be analyzed by using several parameters. For example with traffic performance calculated by the mileage of the various means of transport travels during a period. The traffic performance thereby expresses to what extent the load of traffic affects the infrastructure. Figure 3.1.1 shows the trend in traffic performance (driven km) in Southern Jutland. As seen on the figure the traffic has been increased 2003 – 2013.

Figure 3.1.1 Trends in traffic performance in the Southern Jutland 2003 – 2013 (2001=index 100) 118

116

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98

96 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

There is a fall in traffic growth in 2007 due to the financial crisis.

Map 3.1.1 indicates traffic trends based on traffic counting 2003 – 2013 at selected locations on the trunk roads in the southern part of Jutland.

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Map 3.1.1 Traffic growth at specific locations on the trunk road network in the southern part of Jutland, 2003 – 2013.

From 2003 – 2013 there has been an increase in the number of vehicles passing the two border trunk roads between Denmark and Germany. Figure 3.1.2 shows the trend in the number of vehicles crossing the border and Figure 3.1.3 shows the development in truck traffic across the Danish-German border (northbound) from 2003 – 2013.

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Figure 3.1.2 Trends in the number of vehicles passing the Danish-German border in Jutland 2003 - 2013 (2000 = index 100).

160

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Sæd 80 Frøslev

60

40

20

0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

As seen on the figure the number of vehicles passing the Danish-German border have been relatively stable for the crossing at Frøslev, while the amount of crossings at Sæd is increasing steadily with a slight drop in 2013.

Figure 3.1.3. Development in truck traffic across the Danish-German border (northbound) 2003 - 2013 (Index 100 = 2002) 130,0

125,0

120,0

115,0

110,0

105,0

100,0

95,0

90,0 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Source: International Transport Danmark and estimates made by the Danish Road Directorate

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Figure 3.1.3. shows that after the drop in truck traffic across the Danish-German border in a northbound direction in 2008, the level in 2013 has increased to almost that of 2007.

Overall the growth in traffic in Southern Jutland is similar to the growth in the rest of Denmark.

3.2 Railway

Freight transportation There is an ambition to improve rail road freight transportation in Southern Jutland and across the border. A freight terminal will be established in Esbjerg together with a rail line to the Port of Esbjerg linking railroad freight to sea transport. Vestas has chosen the railway as the preferred way of transport of wind mill wings from Lauchhammer in Germany to the Port of Esbjerg.

The chart below illustrates the development in freight transport (tonnes of cargo) in the period 2000- 2013. The railroad freight transit has increased by 240 per cent since 2000. The railway freight transportation in and out of Denmark across the German border (measured in tonnes) has declined by 58 per cent in the same period.

Figure 3.2.1. Development in rail freight transport across the Danish-German border 2000-2013

Thousand tonnes 8.000

7.000

6.000

5.000

4.000 Transit freight 3.000 International freight

2.000

1.000

0 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Source: Statistics Denmark

According to the Danish Transport Authority2 the railway freight transit traffic will increase by 5.2 per cent per year until the opening of the Fixed Link. Hereafter the total growth in transit freight through Denmark, until the establishment of double track on the German side of the border, is expected to be 31 per cent.

2 Danish Transport Authority: Trafikplan for den statslige jernbane 2012-2027.

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With the opening of the in 2022 a substantial share of transit traffic will be directed from the route via Padborg to the route via Fehmarn. After this shift the freight traffic via Padborg is expected to grow again until full capacity is established in the German Hinterland of the Fehmarn Belt Fixed Link through the establishment of double track.

Passenger transportation

The intercity trains operating every two hours between Copenhagen and Flensburg are the backbone of the railway traffic via Padborg. The trains – operated by DSB – have a German train control system. In Flensburg there are connections to high speed regional trains to Hamburg every hour. In addition two international trains operate across the border between Aarhus-Hamburg (-). The daily night service operating between Copenhagen and Basel/Berlin/Prague was closed in November 2014.

Out of the 400.000 train passengers travelling across the Padborg border each year, approximately 80 per cent travel to and from Jutland and 20 per cent to and from and .

On the Tønder-Niebüll rail line, regional trains cross the border every two hours. In Niebüll there are good connections to high speed regional trains to Hamburg. The number of passengers crossing the border by train via Tønder is 80.000 per year that support operation of regional trains3.

The map beneath depicts annual passenger trips in 1995 and 2012 and shows an increase in number of passengers crossing the border via Padborg. It is not possible to draw conclusions on passenger development on the rail line crossing the border via Tønder due to the lack of data from 1995.

3 Danish Transport Authority: Hearing edition of the national traffic plan.

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Map 3.2.1. Annual passenger trips in 1995 and 2012

3.3 Ports and shipping

Traffic volumes in Southern Jutland ports can roughly be divided into two categories; freight and passenger transport.

Freight

In general, Danish ports also felt the consequences of the global economic downturn. Activity in ports and the amount of freight volumes handled entered into a downward trend in the years 2008-2010. After three consecutive years of reduced activity, the pattern appeared to be changing in 2011 as freight volumes grew. However in 2012 volumes decreased slightly again but grew in 2013, albeit cautiously (fig. 3.3.1).

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Fig. 3.3.1: Development in freight volumes in Danish ports (1000 t)

Development in freight volumes in Danish ports (1000 t) 100000 90000 80000 70000 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Source: Statistics Denmark

In terms of the transport of goods between Southern Jutland ports and Germany, the impact of the economic downturn is less apparent. Although 2008 did coincide with a slight downwards trend in goods volumes, the development in the subsequent years appears to be less of a result of the general economic climate. According to fig. 3.3.2 the transport of goods between Southern Jutland ports and Germany are more or less on par with the situation before the global economic downturn.

The port of Fredericia stands out as the port with the largest freight volumes with a growth exceeding that of 2008. After a significant increase in freight volumes in 2010, volumes dropped in 2011, but have since then increased in the two succeeding years and have almost reached the volume of 2010.

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Fig. 3.3.2: Development in freight volumes between Southern Jutland ports and Germany (1000 t)

Development in freight volumes between Southern Jutland ports and Germany (1000 t) 1800 1600 1400 1200 Aabenraa Havn 1000 Esbjerg Havn 800 Fredericia Havn 600 Kolding Havn 400 200 0 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Source: Statistics Denmark

Passenger transport

The ferry service from the port of Esbjerg to the island of Fanø is the busiest domestic service in Denmark. In 2013 the ferry service handled almost 1.6 million passengers and more than 300.000 private cars.

South Jutland is also home to a second domestic ferry link between the island of Als (Fynshav) and Funen (Bøjden). The Fynshav-Bøjden link represents an important alternative to the fixed link across the and provides a shortcut to Funen for the border region.

In addition to the domestic Southern Jutland ferry lines, an international route operates between the island of Rømø (Havneby) and Sylt (List). The 2013 traffic volumes of the Rømø-Sylt link are listed in table 3.3.1. A sizeable passenger transport and the substantial accommodation of bicycles are indicative of the importance of the ferry link to local communities and not least with regard to tourism.

Table 3.3.1: Transport volumes, Rømø-Sylt

2013 Passengers 321.000 Cars 49.509 Busses 1.301 Lorries 8.642 Bicycles 8.141 Source: Statistics Denmark

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3.4 Air traffic – The case of Sønderborg Airport

Sønderborg Airport is owned by Sønderborg Kommune (municipality). The airport was historically tied to the Danish airline Cimber (later Cimber Sterling) which had its head office at the airport and for 46 years served the route to and from Copenhagen until its bankruptcy in May 2012.

The route was immediately taken over by the Danish carrier DAT. In 2013 Air Alsie stated up on the route instead of DAT. In 2013 the airport had about 43.000 passengers whereof about 41.000 used the only scheduled route to and from Copenhagen.

As part of its development plans, in 2010 the airport engaged a consultancy firm to report on the possibilities for changing the airport into a “binational” Danish/German airport, or for other co- operative arrangements, with the main purpose of attracting more passengers from the German side of the border to the existing route to Copenhagen and to new routes that might be created. Within 1 ½ driving hour from the airport live 1.6 million people, whereof 40 per cent in Germany. The analysis has received support from the EU’s European Regional Development Fund.

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Germany

3.5. Development in road traffic The development of traffic volume in the Jutland Corridor is shown in the following figures. The maps based on Germany-wide traffic counts present the average traffic per day (Monday to Sunday) expressed in number of vehicles per day. These counts distinguish between: - KFZ = all types of motor vehicles and - SV = the share of heavy vehicle traffic (more than 12 tons in weight and busses).

Traffic count in the year 2000:

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Traffic count in the year 2005:

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Traffic count in the year 2010:

As regards the A7 motorway, it can be concluded that the volume of traffic has risen between the years 2000 and 2010. The rise in traffic volume is above average especially in the area close to the border, whereas it is the more moderate the further south one gets. But still, this trend is no indication of the efficiency of this particular road section given that the absolute congestion rate is higher than in the north. Consequently, the capacity of the A7 motorway north of the interchange A7 / A215 can be considered to be adequate. Merely individual road sections, as for example the area of the Rader Hochbrücke, the high-level bridge near Rendsburg, are critical at certain times. South of the above- mentioned motorway interchange, traffic capacity levels are exceeded regularly, especially in the area around Neumünster and in the metropolitan area of Hamburg.

A similar development is to be noted as regards the motorway A 23 and the federal highway B 5, respectively: over-proportional increases can be observed in the area close to the border; whereas towards the south the increases of traffic are more moderate. Problems on the B 5 are mainly caused by tourist and agricultural traffic in the summer months, especially in the section between Tönning and Bredstedt. South of Heide the quantity of traffic reaches a volume that warrants the profile of a motorway.

In general terms, it can be concluded that there has only been a moderate increase in heavy vehicle traffic in Schleswig-Holstein. Again, a disproportionate rise can be noted in the area close to the border.

3.6. Development in rail traffic

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Currently, there are two border crossings between Schleswig-Holstein and Denmark used by local passenger traffic (SPNV), namely Flensburg - Padborg and Niebüll - Tønder. Via the respective train stations on the Danish side of the border there are through trains from Flensburg to Kolding, , Roskilde and Copenhagen as well as from Niebüll to Esbjerg.

The border crossing at Flensburg - Padborg is used by the SPNV as well as by international long- distance passenger and cargo traffic. While the state is responsible for the SPNV as a so-called “Aufgabenträger”, i.e. operator, it does not have any immediate influence on long-distance traffic, because that is run commercially by AG (DB AG) and the Danish state rail (DSB).

For long-distance transport 2 pairs of trains (Hamburg-Århus and Berlin-Århus) are offered by DB AG und DSB. For local passenger traffic, the so-called SPNV, the State of Schleswig-Holstein provides 9 pairs of trains, offering a connection every two hours. The trains mostly run directly from Flensburg to Copenhagen, with Danish IC3 multiple unit trains being used for this line. These trains featuring a standard appropriate for long-distance travel also serve as a substitute in this function. A considerable increase in the number of passengers travelling daily was achieved since the DSB took over operations in 2011, with the number rising from nearly 250 passengers per day to more than 400 passengers per day.

The border-crossing Niebüll - Tønder was reopened in the past few years for the “SPNV” and the offer of transport options is being extended step by step. Currently, there are 10 pairs of trains crossing the border on workdays and 7 on weekends. The railway company Arriva, a foreign subsidiary of the DB AG, provides the service, which is mainly used by German pupils attending the Danish high school in Tønder. The number of passengers using this line is rising steadily and demand is particularly high in summertime due to the tourists. It has been possible to step up demand substantially since the year 2006. As a model of good cross-border cooperation the Danish Trafikstyrelsen is in charge of this section of the line.

The following table shows the development of the average number of passengers per day in cross-border passenger traffic, i.e. SPNV:

Railway line 2003 2006 2010 2011 2012 2013 Tønder - Süderlügum 57 98 131 112 133 132 Padborg - Flensburg 267 252 262 420 420 391

Altogether, cross-border passenger rail-traffic which started from a low level is developing very successfully. In order to support this trend, there are plans to extend both connections to run on an hourly basis in the medium- to long-term.

3.7. Development in shipping Ferry services between List/Sylt and Havneby/Rømø have developed as follows (expressed in tons):

2000 2010 2011 2012 2013 Transshipment 53,654 t 59,994 t 92,634 t* 86,546 98,036 Passengers 415,467 421,072 389,563 295,411 323,672

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 Increase in quantity because of some bigger building projects on the island of Sylt 3.8. Development of freight traffic In the area of the A 7 motorway border crossing at Ellund the average everyday quantity of traffic (dtV) has risen from approx. 12,400 vehicles in 2005 to 16,200 in 2010. The share of trucks is approx. 25%. In the area of the B 5 federal highway/ border to Denmark the dtV has risen from 4,283 motor vehicles in 2000 to 5,771 vehicles in 2010, with the share of trucks being approx. 4% (Source: Traffic count in 2010). In 2008, the cross-border volume of freight traffic in the area of Germany/ Northern border- region and Denmark amounted to 23.7 million tons by truck and 6.2 million tons by rail (Source: CB Log of Oct. 14, 2010).

3.9. Development of air traffic In the year 2000, some 16,600 flight movements were counted on the airfield Flensburg-Schäferhaus (takeoffs and landings by airplanes). The number amounted to 13,200 in the year 2005 and 12,900 in 2011.

At the airport of Hamburg-Fuhlsbüttel approx. 165,000 flight movements and some 10 million passengers were counted in 2000. In 2005, the number of flight movements dropped to about 156,000 (with 10.7 million passengers) and in the year 2013 there were 144,000 aircraft movements (with 13.5 million passengers).

A survey done at Hamburg airport in 2013 revealed that app. 110,000 Danish passengers used the airport (journey from Denmark and flight from / to Hamburg, without transit passengers from Copenhagen). Thus, the share of Danish passengers was less than 1%.

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Chapter 4. Current infrastructure programmes in Denmark and Germany -Focusing on the Jutland corridor.

Denmark

The Jutland corridor is the backbone of the Jutland infrastructure system. In the Danish road system, the Jutland corridor is represented mainly by the E45 motorway in Eastern Jutland, which has provided a high level of mobility and economic development in the region. However, the growth in traffic causes increasing congestion on parts of E45, which will be one of the key issues for the future infrastructure to handle.

Within the last few years, several initiatives have been carried out for the benefit of the motorists on E45. In 2013, the most trafficked stretch at was expanded, and in 2014 the capacity at Kolding was enlarged by inclusion of the emergency lanes. With the political transport agreement of 24 June 2014 it was decided to allocate DKK 38.9 million for the construction of a third southbound lane south of the Tunnel at Aalborg, where the accessibility is currently challenged. Furthermore, approx. DKK 100 million was given in grants to four new interchanges at Skanderborg, Kolding, Aarhus and Horsens.

In addition, several road projects in the Jutland corridor are ready to be initiated, when the funding is provided. This is the case for an extension of the motorway between Fredericia and Kolding and a Third Limfjord Fixed Link at Aalborg, which have both been analyzed at the EIA level.

With regard to the long-term development strategies, the Jutland corridor has been part of a broader planning effort, which has identified large-scale infrastructure demands in the years after 2020 and major strategic options for further infrastructure investments beyond 2020 (the strategic analyses). This work was initiated by a broad political agreement in 2009 and finalized in the spring 2014 with a summary report.

The strategic analyses have identified two main long-term development strategies for north/southbound road capacity in Jutland:

 Further development of the motorway capacity in the E45 corridor  Different models for establishment of a new motorway corridor in Central Jutland

The analyses show that the cheapest and most effective way to deal with the growing congestion problems in East Jutland in 2030 will be a gradual expansion of the E45 corridor. Environmentally, it will be relatively little intrusive to expand the highway in the existing corridor. But in terms of traffic, it will be disturbing for road users in the periods in which construction work is in progress.

Another strategy is to establish a new motorway corridor though Central Jutland, e.g. the so-called “Hærvejsmotorvej”. A new motorway corridor through Central Jutland can both absorb some of the traffic from the E45 and connect some Central and West Jutland towns that are not currently connected to the motorway network. The strategic analyses show that especially the central corridor (“Hærvejsmotorvejen”), can postpone the needs for expansions of the E45. However, the project is very extensive and expensive with a construction budget of DKK 15-20 billion. The full relief impact in relation to E45 requires that the new motorway is fully established, which is estimated to take at least 15

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years. In addition, even with a fully established Central Jutland motorway, congestion will still occur in some sections of E45

Overall, the report concludes that irrespective of the chosen long-term development strategy in Jutland, it will be necessary to expand the stretches of the E45, which are already congested at present.

In recent years there has also been invested heavily in upgrading the existing rail infrastructure in Denmark. The political accord states that the train must be a viable alternative to the car, and most of the traffic growth in the future must be absorbed by public transport.

Investments have also been made in the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS) that will harmonize the European signal systems and make all Danish rail transport more efficient. Installation will start on early deployment lines in 2016 for testing in commercial service before the main roll-out of the new signalling system. The new signalling system will be implementet before the end of 2021 with an overlap between lines, prioritised according to the traffic level, with roll-out taking place first on the most heavily used lines.

It has been decided to upgrade the single track section between Vamdrup and Vojens of 20 km. to double tracks. The upgrade will be finalised ultimo 2015 and will eliminate the bottleneck between Vamdrup and Vojens.. It has also been decided to electrify the railway between Esbjerg and Lunderskov. This is the first step towards electrification of the most important Danish rail lines. The electrification will provide a modern, cheaper, more stable and environment friendly railway.

Furthermore investments will be made in a program focussing on repairing and replacing rail tracks and in order to improve the reliability.

In January 2014 the Danish government agreed with the parliament on the so-called “Train Fund Denmark”, which will modernize the Danish railway system dramatically. Denmark will spend almost €4 billion – from harmonization of the taxes on oil from the North Sea – with the purpose of building new tracks for high speed trains and the electrification of the main rail-system. According to the plan, Denmark will invest in 90 km [55 miles] new high-speed double-track lines. Additionally, existing lines will be upgraded and almost 600 km [370 miles] of tracks will be electrified. The Train Fund will result in massive investments in the railway system, which will also benefit the transport corridors to Germany.

Train Fund Denmark will be realized in the middle of the 2020’s according to the plan.

Finally ports play a key role in terms of Danish international trade. The main share in terms of volume of all imports and exports is transported by ship. This makes ports a central node for freight transport also providing intermodal transport.

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Germany

In principle, federal transport routes in Germany are planned and financed by the federal level (Bund). The main strategic planning instrument encompassing all transport modes is the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan (BVWP), which classifies projects into the categories “urgent need” (Vordringlicher Bedarf) and “additional need” (Weiterer Bedarf). However, the BVWP is not a finance plan, meaning that even projects classified as an urgent need do not "automatically" get their funding. The existing BVWP from the year 2003 has been underfinanced for years now because of the gap between the financial need and the actually available funds of the federal transport budget.

Essentially, the BVWP decided by the Federal Government only has the nature of a recommendation. However, the plan was taken up by German Parliament (Bundestag) for the federal railways and the major federal roads in the so-called "needs plan" (Bedarfsplan), which is an annex to both the Federal Railway Extension Act (Bundesschienenwegeausbaugesetz (BSchwAG) and the Federal Trunk Road Extension Act (Fernstraßenausbaugesetz (FStrAbG). These two laws provide that 5-year plans be drawn up for the concrete realisation of the needs plan. For this purpose, the Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure (BMVI) compiles so-called “investment framework plans” (Investitionsrahmenplan - IRP) for a period of 5 years. The current IRP is valid for the period from 2011 to 2015.

At present, the BMVI is working on an update of the BVWP which shall be applicable from 2015. The following bullet points summarize the current status of the procedure:  The BMVI presented its basic concept in the spring of 2014.  A new traffic forecast for the period up to the year 2030 has been available since the summer of 2014.  The period for submission of projects is over. The projects will be reviewed by the BMVI and/or their external consultants on the basis of defined criteria (cost-benefit criteria etc.)  The BMVI intends to draft an overall plan from these separate projects and to discuss this draft in the federal cabinet.

The main problem which transport infrastructure planning is faced with is that the federal transport budget has been structurally underfunded for many years. Only roughly one half of the projects included in the urgent need category of the 2003 BVWP could be realised to date. The condition of the existing transport infrastructure has deteriorated Germany-wide. As a result, the BMVI announced in its basic concept that the maintenance of the existing infrastructure shall have absolute priority. In terms of expansion, priority shall be accorded to the removal of traffic bottlenecks and to the major axes and freight traffic corridors.

State roads (Landesstraßen) are essentially financed by the state budget and municipal roads and lanes by the municipalities and counties. For municipal building projects the federal state and the state of Schleswig-Holstein grant subsidies under certain conditions according to the German Community Transport Financing Act (Gemeindeverkehrsfinanzierungsgesetz (GVFG).

In the following the most important extension projects are presented.

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4.1. Roads Upgrading of the A 7 motorway Because of the growing traffic volume the A 7 motorway will be expanded between the interchange at Bordesholm and the Elbtunnel in Hamburg from four to six or eight lanes, respectively.

In Schleswig-Holstein the expansion is planned on a length of 65 kilometres. This expansion project costing about € 372 million is included in the “urgent need” category (Vordringlicher Bedarf) of the BVWP as well as in the IRP 2011-2015. It will be executed in a public-private partnership as a so-called availability model (Verfügbarkeitsmodell), meaning that besides the expansion, the private company also takes over maintenance and operation services for a period of 30 years. A monthly remuneration is paid for these services. Furthermore, bonus-penalty regulations have been agreed upon. The project also contains a basic renewal of the existing lanes. To avoid delays as far as possible, 2 lanes per direction can be used by vehicles during the construction period. Therefore, the expansion work will be done on one side only, while the traffic runs on the other side.

Legally binding plan approval notices have been granted for all construction sections in Schleswig- Holstein. A construction consortium was awarded the contract after completion of the tendering procedure. Construction work is scheduled to begin at the end of 2014 and to be completed after four years in 2018.

In the city of Hamburg 3 sections are planned for the expansion to 6 or 8 lanes, partly with coverings. Work on the construction in Hamburg-Schnelsen began in the middle of 2014; the last section in Hamburg- will be finished in 2025.

The need to build a substitute for the Rader high bridge by the year 2026 at the latest was already discussed in Chapter 2.1.

Extension of the A 20 motorway To provide relief for the Hamburg Elbtunnel along the A 7 motorway, a northwest bypass of Hamburg including a new link across the river Elbe will be realised by the A 20 motorway being built in different sections. The A 20 - coming from Mecklenburg-Vorpommern - is already being used by traffic east of Bad Segeberg. The A 20 motorway with all its sections - albeit in different realization categories – is part of the IRP 2011-2015.

The plan approval decision for the adjoining sections between Weede and Wittenborn (south of Bad Segeberg with the connection to the A 21 motorway) was ruled to be unlawful and unenforceable by the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig. The Federal Administrative Court has decided in favour of the claims filed by several conservation groups and one community. According to the ruling, the errors found are not of such a quality that the plans as a whole must be called into question a priori. As part of the further procedure, the State of Schleswig-Holstein is conducting more extensive fauna studies and is assessing alternate routings especially in terms of their environmental compatibility

The impact of the above-mentioned court decision on the following sections of the motorway from Wittenborn up to the river Elbe and for the fixed link across the Elbe itself must also be evaluated and considered in the pan approval procedure. The Schleswig-Holstein Ministry of Transport assumes that there will be a delay of approx. 2 years because of this reworking of the project.

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Funding needs to be secured for all but one (between Hohenfelde and Sommerland) of the adjoining sections (west of Wittenborn). As for the fixed link across the river Elbe, the Schleswig-Holstein Ministry of Transport has proposed a funding model like those used for the Oresund and Fehmarnbelt fixed links, where a state-run planning company implements the project, guaranteeing the debt service by a state guarantee and thus enabling the raising of low-interest credits.

Extension of the A 23 motorway and the B 5 federal highway Several extension projects are planned for the A 23 and B 5. The new bridge across the river Stör was completed in June 2010. Demolition work on the old bridge has been carried out since October 2011. The extension of the A 23 motorway from Itzehoe-South to Itzehoe-North (a four lane-expansion of the B 5 to the A 23) has been started. Completion of the entire segment including a newly built second bridge across the river Stör is scheduled for 2015.

The section of the B5 between Itzehoe and Wilster-West is being upgraded to three lanes. The first construction stage was completed in April 2014. The plan approval procedure is currently under way for the second construction phase. An upgrade of the highway between Wilster-West and Brunsbüttel is the long-term aim as soon as the two above-mentioned sections have been completed.

In the area of the B 5 between Tönning and Husum planning for a three-lane-traffic management system has begun. The objective is to enhance road safety and to be able to better manage peaks in seasonal traffic. The plan approval procedure has been initiated for the first section. The construction plans for sections 2 to 4 are currently being drawn up.

To boost the competitiveness of the west coast area, the BVWP-project “B 5 bypass Hattstedt – Bredstedt” will be realised in addition. The plan approval notice was granted on March 30, 2012, but is pending at court. At present, a plan revision procedure is being carried out. The project is included in the IRP.

The state government is of the opinion that the current traffic volume and the traffic volume expected in the medium-term do not warrant a four-lane motorway-like expansion of the B 5 federal highway north of Heide up to the Danish border, as is demanded by the region.

4.2. Railway The following expansion projects are planned for the Jutland Corridor: - upgrading and modernisation of the railway station in Elmshorn with the construction of a fourth platform line - improvement of the suburban rail connection from Hamburg to Elmshorn including an expansion to three tracks between Elmshorn and Pinneberg.

The projects are incorporated in the urgent need category of the BVWP – albeit in a somewhat different configuration (cf. Section 2.2). However, financing has not been secured as yet.

Work on the design and permit planning for a continuous double-track upgrade and electrification of the A1 line between Hamburg-Eidelstedt and Kaltenkirchen operated by AKN is currently in progress. The new line “S 21” will enable rapid transit from Kaltenkirchen to Hamburg Central Station.

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As regards the marsh railway line, the State of Schleswig-Holstein wishes to achieve a complete double- track extension and electrification of the line between Itzehoe and Westerland. For this purpose, the project has been submitted to the Federal MOT for inclusion in the BVWP, the Federal Transport Infrastructure Plan.

Currently, there are no plans to extend the Niebüll-Tønder line.

4.3. Shipping To the best of the State Government’s knowledge no extension projects are planned for cross-border traffic.

4.4. Air traffic To the best of the State Government’s knowledge no extension projects are planned for the airfield at Flensburg-Schäferhaus.

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Chapter 5. Prioritised projects by the Danish-German Transport Commission

In the previous chapters the interim report from the Danish-German Transport Commission was updated. In chapter 5 the projects which the members of the commission have prioritised will be described. The projects are categorised into different categories according to geography and mode of transport. To each project a fact sheet has been made, which gives a short introduction to the most important facts about the project. This chapter lists the different fact sheets according to the category the fact sheet has been ascribed to.

The fact sheets focus on either the Danish or the German side, but several of the projects are cross- border by nature. When possible the fact sheets from the Danish/German side of a related project will follow one another.

Fact sheets are categorized into railway/road and western/mid-eastern corridor as listed in the table on the following page. Projects which cannot meaningfully be ascribed to any of the above categories are categorized as “other”.

The western corridor The south-western part of Jutland and north-western part of Germany are connected with the summerhouse area on the west coast both by Route 11/B5 running from Esbjerg to Heide and the rail line Bramming – Tønder – Niebüll. Thus this road and railway section is of great importance for the local traffic as well as for tourists visiting the West coast during holidays.

The mid/eastern corridor The E45/A7 represents the international connection between Norway and part of Sweden and the rest of Europe and serves much of the national northbound and southbound traffic and passenger flows through Jutland to Germany and to the rest of Europe. The E45/A7 produces a high level of mobility and economic development in the region. The motorway serves several types of traffic, which are all growing in volume. This goes for commuter traffic, traffic within and between regions and international traffic flow towards Germany and Europe.

The railway running from Hirtshals – Aalborg – Aarhus –Hamburg is of great importance to both passenger traffic as well as freight traffic. More than half of the trailers arriving by ferry in Hirsthals are destined south of the Danish-German border and is therefore highly relevant for the Scandinavian rail freight corridor between Hirtshals and Hamburg.

All fact sheets are shown in appendix A to E.

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Western corridor Mid/eastern corridor Roads  Upgrade/extensions  New motorway through central Jutland of Route 11/B5  Expansion of the A 7 motorway to six lanes from the interchange at Bordesholm to the Danish border  Construction of a bridge to replace the Rader Bridge  Establishment of a Danish-German mobility management system for steering traffic guidance measures while expansion work is in progress on the A 7 motorway  Extension of the A 20 motorway with a fixed link across the river Elbe west of Hamburg at Glückstadt  B 199 –Bypass around Handewitt  East-West connections in Schleswig-Holstein

Railway  Upgrade Bramming-  Improvements on the Scandinavian rail freight Tønder - Niebüll corridor Hirtshals-Hamburg  Improvement of the  Double track and high speed Aarhus-Hamburg railway services  Extensions in the intermodal terminal in Padborg along the westcoast  Jutland-railwayline: Improvement of the transport-  Extension of marsh services railway-line  Jutland-railwayline: shortening of passage time  Cooperation between the combined transport terminals of Padborg and Neumünster  Replacement of the high level rail bridge in Rendsburg by a new structure Other  Standardisation of signalling system in Germany and Denmark  Speed upgrade of the rail line Sønderborg-Tinglev  Common Danish-German railway station  Cross-border shipping in the fjord of Flensburg  Logistics  Airtraffic: Use of aiports in Sønderborg and Billund for German customers  Extension of electro-mobility

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Chapter 6. Recommendations

The members of the Danish-German Transport Commission agree that not all of the proposed projects can be achieved within a short period of time. The recommendations from the commission are therefore categorised into short/medium term, long term and very long term achievements.

The recommendations of the Danish-German Transport Commission are listed below.

1. Proposals for objectives implementable in the short or medium term

 Expansion of the A 7 motorway from the interchange at Bordesholm to the Elbtunnel in Hamburg: Establishment of a Danish-German mobility management system for steering traffic guidance measures.

 Construction of the A 20 motorway (some sections in the long-term).

 Upgrade of the A 23 motorway and the B 5 federal highway: - Closure of the gap near Itzehoe - Expansion to three lanes between Itzehoe and Wilster-West (2nd construction phase) - Expansion to three lanes between Tönning and Husum (partly long-term as well) - Bypass construction between Hattstedt and Bredstedt

 Construction of a bypass around Handewitt (B 199 federal highway realignment)

 Improvements of the Scandinavian rail freight corridor Hirtshals-Hamburg

 Speed upgrade of the rail line Sønderborg-Tinglev

 Extensions in the intermodal terminal in Padborg

 Speed upgrade of the railway line Bramming-Tønder-Niebüll

 Jutland rail line: - Expansion of the long-distance rail services on the Jutland line (second daily ICE-connection) - Expansion of the single-tracked sections in Denmark (between Tinglev and Padborg as well as between Vanderup and Vojens)

 Cross-border passenger shipping on the inner Flensburg Fjord.

 Intensified use of the airports at Sønderburg and Billund by potential customers from Schleswig- Holstein

2. Proposals for objectives implementable in the long term

 Upgrade of Route 11/24

 Construction of a replacement for the Rader high level bridge as part of the A 7 Motorway.

 Construction of the A 20 motorway (western sections, fixed link across the Elbe river).

 Expansion of the B 5 federal highway: - Expansion of the section from Wilster-West to Brünsbüttel to three lanes

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- Expansion of the section between Tönning and Husum to three lanes.

 Establish a common Danish-German railway station

 Double track, high speed and electrification on the Aarhus-Hamburg rail line

 Jutland rail line: Construction of a replacement for the high level rail bridge at Rendsburg

 Cooperation between the Padborg and Neumünster rail logistics terminals.

 Standardization of signaling technology (ETCS).

 Marsh railway line: Expansion to an uninterrupted double-tracked, electrified line

3. Proposals for objectives implementable in the very long term

 Construction of a new motorway through central Jutland

 Expansion of the A 7 motorway to six lanes from the interchange at Bordesholm to the Danish border.

 B 5 federal highway: Expansion to three lanes from Husum to the Danish border (if there are substantial increases in traffic volume and the E 11 is also expanded in Denmark).

For a description of the recommended projects see appendix A-E

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