The Munich traffic expert Martin Vieregg warns that the Federal Court of Auditors forecast cost increase for the Fehmarnbelt link could be even higher at 3.5 billion euros. "The biggest problem from my point of view is that there was no real planning at the beginning," Vieregg told SPIEGEL. "We thought a bit and then briefly skipped over what it probably costs."
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The necessary funds for the German-Danish project had been set too low from the beginning. In addition, there would be claims from plaintiffs, including environmental associations and municipalities. "If implemented, it will be even more expensive, which would set a precedent nationwide," says Vieregg.
The Fehmarnbelt is an 18-kilometer-wide waterway in the western Baltic Sea. The project plans to pass under a tunnel. The cost of the actual construction will be borne by Denmark. The opening is not expected until 2028. On the German side, especially the rail connection is costly. So 55 kilometers are to be built new, bundled with the route of the highway 1.
Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU) and his colleagues are under enormous pressure, said the traffic expert in the SPIEGEL interview. "In 2008, they made an international treaty with Denmark: you pay the tunnel, we the connection in Germany." It had been planned afterwards. Unfortunately, such coasters are often available - with a well-known result. "
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