In October 2007, the German government awarded a concession company in which HOCHTIEF Solutions has a 50 percent share via HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions the contract to plan, fi nance and build/upgrade an approximately 45 kilometer section of the A4 national highway between the Hesse/Thuringia federal state border and the Gotha junction and then operate it for a period of 30 years. The public-private partnership (PPP) project has an investment volume of EUR 258.5 million. The private partners will be responsible for the highway section up to 2037.
THE PROJECT: Together with a partner, HOCHTIEF Solutions realized the construction and upgrading works on the A4 on the basis of a PPP model. An approximately 20 kilometer section of the existing highway was replaced by 22.5 kilometers of new road which bypasses the city of Eisenach and the Hörselberge nature reserve. In addition, two kilometers of the existing
road were widened to six lanes without interrupting traffi c. For a period of 30 years, the consortium Via Solutions Thüringen will operate and maintain a 45 kilometer section of the A4 in Thuringia between the border with the federal state of Hesse and the Gotha junction. The contract also comprised design/planning and fi nancing. The PPP project, which represents an investment volume of EUR 258.5 million, is one of the so-called A-model highway upgrading projects for which Germany’s Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Affairs has invited bids and awarded contracts.
REALIZATION: HOCHTIEF Solutions had a 33 percent share in the construction joint venture. At peak times during construction of the Hörselberge Bypass, up to 400,000 cubic meters of earth a month had to be moved, bringing the total over the two-year construction period to 3.7 million cubic meters. The work involved up to 500 personnel and more than 100 earthmoving machines. Among other things, they installed 53 kilometers of drainage ducts and placed one million tons of frost-protection material and 300,000 cubic meters of concrete. Some 15,000 tons of steel were used to build overpasses and underpasses and three large viaducts along the section of highway.
OPERATION: To refi nance their investment, the private partners receive the truck toll charged on the highway section. There was also startup fi nancing support from the government. For passenger cars, no toll is charged. Since May 2008, more than 20 concession company employees have been responsible for ensuring smooth traffi c operations on the A4 and keeping it in good condition in the period up to 2037. The scope of the contract includes road monitoring, green area management, repair works and winter service.
THE ADVANTAGES: One benefi t of the PPP approach is that the new highway section was built to a high standard of quality more quickly than would have been possible otherwise, thus enabling the Hörselberge bypass to be opened to traffi c around one year earlier than originally planned. The newly upgraded section of highway speeds up traffi c fl ow and enables motorists to reach their destinations more swiftly, more economically and with less hassle. The new part of the A4 has lower gradients, which helps to reduce the incidence of congestion. In addition, the Hörselberge nature conservation zone is being renaturalized, while the city of Eisenach is relieved pof traffi c strain.
