Drivers need to have just a few more weeks of patience on the A3 between Croix de Gasperich and Aire de Berchem before traffic is set to improve as the first section of the widened A3 will be open by the "end of 2024" at the latest.
French border crossers and residents of the south of the country will have a much easier time commuting through Luxembourg as works to widen the Dudelange motorway to 2x3 lanes between the Croix de Gasperich and the Aire de Berchem will be completed in three months after two years and nine months.
While the Ministry of Mobility and Public Works has not declared an official date just yet, the Ministry can confirm that "this first section of the A3 will be completed by the end of 2024," a spokesperson for the National Roads Administration confirmed to RTL Infos.
According to European regulations, in each new motorway project, the protective separation wall must meet the new standards in place from the time of the project. This is why, in June and July, the wall that motorists on the A3 had been driving alongside since 1978, had to come down. Since this summer and throughout the month of September, motorists can still observe the placement of a base on the central section at the Aire de Berchem.
The new wall is made up of precast concrete elements. Unlike before, there will be a double row of walls that are a metre high, which is higher than the previous wall. "The elements of the wall will hold for much longer and are significantly better at absorbing shocks without deforming. The individual elements of the wall are interconnected, which allows the shock to be absorbed over a longer length," explained the spokesperson for the National Roads Administration.
Contrary to what people might think, the new elements forming the wall are actually not fixed and are instead simply placed on a concrete base. They are then connected to each other through specially-crafted links.
Once the motorway is back in action, the new A3 will be 14.50 metres wide. This means three 3.5 metre traffic lanes and a 4 metre hard shoulder. The central reservation will be 3.5 metres wide.
© Domingos Oliveira / RTL
As explained by former Transport Minister François Bausch, the new third lane created on either side will eventually be reserved for carpooling and public transport.
Initially scheduled to take five years, works to widen the A3 have unfortunately been delayed. The entire motorway, which is 13.3 km long will be fully ready by 2030.
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Works complete in 2024 at the earliest
