Strike chaos on the highways: Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia suffer from traffic jams!

Strike chaos on the highways: Hamburg and North Rhine-Westphalia suffer from traffic jams!

Chaos on the streets of Hamburg: There is a risk of massive traffic disruptions on Tuesday as the Verdi union calls for a large-scale strike. A total of 14,000 employees of the federal Autobahn GmbH and numerous other employees of the state road companies are in focus, especially in the Hanseatic city. The strike will be carried out over a period of 24 hours from Monday evening at 6 p.m. and will affect, among other things, the tunnel centers and control centers on motorways, federal and country roads. This measure comes as no surprise after collective bargaining for both groups stalled, as Bild.de reports.

Work will be stopped in the north traffic center, at the Hamburg Stillhorn and Othmarschen motorway maintenance depots and in the Elbe tunnel. The Elbe Tunnel could become a bottleneck because, thanks to emergency service agreements, only two out of three lanes remain open during the strike period. Affected drivers should therefore dress warmly when traveling on Autobahn 7 towards Flensburg and Hanover, as this could become a traffic jam trap. Verdi is also calling on public sector employees in Hamburg to go on strike. This could also lead to restrictions at offices and container handling in the port of Hamburg.

Problems also outside of Hamburg

However, the effects are not only felt in Hamburg. Lower Saxony asks drivers to be careful as delays in winter service are possible. The strike will also be felt in North Rhine-Westphalia. The traffic and tunnel headquarters in Leverkusen will be on strike for 24 hours starting Tuesday afternoon. The tunnels affected include the Oberdollendorf tunnel and the Weserauen tunnel.

Verdi is demanding, among other things, a salary increase of 7 percent per month, but at least 300 euros more, as well as an additional 300 euros for junior staff. The next round of negotiations is scheduled for February 6th. On January 20th, Verdi again called for warning strikes. These take place at a total of 18 locations nationwide and could lead to further traffic restrictions. In cities such as Nuremberg, Rostock, Stuttgart, and Berlin, actions are also planned that could affect citizens' mobility, as Verdi reports.

Given these developments, the coming days will be challenging for many commuters and travelers. Anyone planning to use the motorways and federal highways should find out about alternative routes in good time and take possible traffic jams into account. We will continue to keep you updated on developments regarding collective bargaining and strike action.