© AFP
The development of a roundabout between the N7 and the CR115 is currently on hold due to lacking details concerning the planned Google data centre in Bissen.
The planned data centre of US internet giant Google has repeatedly caused debates in recent years. Whether or not the facility will ever make it to Bissen is still unclear at this point, which is why the development of a roundabout has been put on ice until further notice. Since the traffic block would help replace a dangerous crossing, politicians from the local opposition parties are now expressing frustrations over the lack of progress.
A tender invitation for the construction of the roundabout was initially scheduled to be issued in 2019. However, in his response to a recent parliamentary enquiry from MP Claude Lamberty, Minister for Mobility and Public Works François Bausch admitted that due to the lack of information regarding the exact location of the supply network for the data centre, no progress can be made at this moment in time.
Local council member Christian Hoscheid from the Christian Social People's Party (CSV) thus drew attention to the fact that there is still no guarantee that Google will actually build the data centre: "The traffic situation is catastrophic, accidents happen almost on a daily basis. We also have a construction debris tip, which means that hundreds of lorries use the crossing on a daily basis. About 1,500 people work in the local industrial zone. To that you can add the businesses in the Bissen area, which definitely do not help ease the situation. We have to react quickly if we want to avoid a full-on traffic collapse."
Members of the opposition thus argue that the interests of a company cannot outweigh public safety. A provisional roundabout should be set up as quickly as possible.
Minister Bausch has acknowledged that this is a possible solution: "I will have my people evaluate whether something provisional can be set up. It is always worth checking when there is a location with many accidents. For the rest, all of the promised remodeling operations are well-advanced. We could quickly issue a tender invitation, but there are still details missing."
Regardless of whether there will be a temporary solution or not, it is clear that numerous vehicles will use the crossing before the headstone ofthe data centre is eventually placed.
