Brenner: the work on the Lueg bridge started

From the 1st of January 2025 the Bridge will undergo a complete reconstruction, necessary to ensure the safety of one of the main Alpine transit routes. The reconstruction work will lead to significant traffic restrictions lasting until 2030. 

The Brenner motorway will be reduced to a single lane in both directions and this stretch of motorway is expected to cause long queues and disruptions for industrial vehicles. The Brenner Pass is among the most crowded Alpine crossings in Central Europe, as well as a very important axis for Italian exports with an annual lorry traffic exceeding 2.4 million vehicles. 

In addition to the reduction to a single lane, traffic control systems and further transit bans for trucks are also planned. Heavy vehicles are already involved in a long series of limitations such as the dosages of trucks coming from Germany and heading towards Italy, from the 7th of January in the area of the Kufstein/Kiefersfelden border crossing, which we talked about in this article.

During peak traffic periods, two lanes will still be operational, one dedicated to industrial vehicles, which will use the overtaking lane, and the other reserved for cars. However, managing heavy goods traffic remains an important challenge to face. Austrian authorities will continue to enforce dosage systems in 2025, limiting lorry crossings. This measure has been strongly criticised by Italy, with the intervention of the European Commission, which accused Austria of violating EU regulations on free movement. Recently, the Chambers of Commerce of Trento and Bolzano asked for “exemptions and more flexibility as the restriction of circulation will cause economic damage to road haulage, trade, tourism, and businesses”. Truck drivers who decide to avoid the Brenner Pass will move to Tarvisio, thus increasing heavy traffic also in Friuli Venezia Giulia.