Official start of tunneling for the Branich tunnel in Schriesheim

As part of a bypass for the town of Schriesheim, the 1.796 m long Bra­nich ­tun­nel is being built on the L 536 road. The tunnel will pass under the up to 280 m high Branich district north of Schriesheim with a cover height of up to 115 m.

The tunnel, with two 3,5 m traffic lanes, emergency routes and margins, will have a clear width of 9,50 m and a clear height of 4,50 m. To meet tunnel safety requirements, four escape galleries are planned.

With the exception of the construction pits at the western and eastern portals, the Branich tunnel is being constructed using the closed construction method. The implications of this became clear during the ceremony on 1st February 2012 when the tunnel’s patroness Birgit Ibach-Höfer, wife of the mayor of Schriesheim, detonated the first blast. With costs of 85 million Euros, this is currently the largest road construction project in the state of Baden-Würt­tem­berg.

During his speech, District President Dr. Rudolf Kühner emphasized the importance of the project for the region. The tunnel will improve the connection between the Vordere Odenwald region and the Rhine valley and reduce traffic passing through the town of Schriesheim by 8.000 vehicles per day.

KREBS+KIEFER carried out the design planning (Phase 3) for this project and produced the tender documentation on behalf of the construction department of the regional council in Karlsruhe. At the moment, KREBS+KIEFER is checking the execution documents with respect to structural aspects and advising on tunnel construction.