München area autobahn bypass project abandoned after €500,000 study

The Kreistag (district council) halted the project in September following the study’s negative assessment. Despite the decision, the findings were recently presented to approximately 32 city and municipal councilors from Haar, Kirchheim, and Feldkirchen, though only around ten attendees were present.

The Bernard Group, an international consultancy, assessed two routes. Route 1, utilizing existing roads, was estimated to cost €50 million. Route 2, a completely new autobahn parallel, would have cost nearly double at €90 million. Both options were deemed technically complex and would have involved significant environmental and social impacts. The study concluded that the benefits of either route – reduced traffic in local centers – did not justify the costs and disruption.

Instead of a large-scale bypass, the study suggests smaller, localized solutions, including expanding the A99 and building an alternative route around Feldkirchen and Putzbrunn. Other options include reducing speed limits to 30 km/h, shifting traffic, and restricting truck access.

Feldkirchen Mayor Andreas Janson criticized the suggested solutions, citing previous rejections of requests for a 30 km/h speed limit on the B471. Michaela Harlander, a Kirchheim councilor, expressed frustration, questioning the practicality of encouraging public transport and cycling.

Haar City Councilor Thomas Reichel voiced disappointment at the lack of road construction, while Peter Siemsen, a Haar FDP councilor, deemed the study “disappointing” and “superficial,” arguing that it failed to provide practical solutions.

Haar Mayor Andreas Bukowski emphasized that individual municipalities must now implement smaller-scale improvements, referencing plans to relocate the Kreisstraße M18/EBE 7 to create a bypass for Ottendichl.