When you think of Germany abroad, you think of beer, dirndls, football and the motorway. It is primarily known, famous and infamous for the fact that there is no general speed limit (yet). Today we have put together a few facts about “our” highway and also cleared up some myths and legends.
Where does the term highway come from?
The term highway was coined by Robert Otzen in the year 1929. Analogous to the railway, which also connects two places directly, he called the road highway.
Where is the oldest motorway in Germany?
The oldest German highway is the Avus in Berlin. The approximately 10 kilometers long track was once the fastest race track for cars and was built between 1913 and 1921. Incidentally, Avus means automobile traffic and exercise road. It is probably the only highway where there were times tribunes. The grandstand at the northern end is a listed building. The last race at the AVUS took place in the year 1998.
But that was rather a racetrack, where was the first real highway built?
The first “real” highway was opened to traffic in August 1932. Today's A555 was then called the “automobile-only road” or “intersection-free motor vehicle road” and ran between the cities of Bonn and Cologne.
It is also clear that Adolf Hitler and the other Nazi thugs did not have much to do with the first highway. This was commissioned by Konrad Adenauer (then mayor of the city of Cologne). However, it is indisputable that between 1933 and 1942 about 3.860 highway kilometers were built.
How long is the highway?
Today there are around 13.000 kilometers of motorway in Germany. In an international comparison, Germany is behind Spain (17.109 km), the USA (over 77.000 km) and China (over 130.000 km) and the motorway even made it into the hit parade and charts in 1974. The band “Kraftwerk” even made it into the US charts with the title “Autobahn” and many people still know the refrain: “We’re driving on the highway!”
There is currently a “competition” for the longest motorways in Germany. The BAB 1 is currently in third place with a length of 749 km, but could be extended by 25 kilometers after a renovation. Then the BAB 1 would displace the A 3 from second place, because it is 769 kilometers long. The BAB 7 is and remains the leader. The Autobahn 7 is 962 kilometers long.
On the other hand, the most heavily traveled is the A 100 in Berlin, followed by the A3 in the area of the Cologne Ring and the Westkreuz in Frankfurt on the A5.
Is it really allowed to drive as fast as you would like in Germany?
Yes! No! You can not say that in general! Today, on the highways a speed of 130 km / h applies, even if there is (still) no general speed limit, many sections are already provided with a speed limit. There you can only drive the maximum allowed maximum speed.
Curious: This is more common in the USA, but in Germany there are also some exits that go off to the left of the road. There are also motorways that have traffic lights, so traffic routing can be changed during events or closures. During the Cold War, some sections of the highway were converted into “makeshift airfields”. Planes could then have landed and taken off there.
The first fatal traffic accident on the highway was on the first motorway between Cologne and Bonn. At the 11.06.1934 a truck crashed into a bridge railing. Two people were killed. Positive: In recent years, fewer and fewer people are on the highways to death.