Current State
Traffic volume on the Cologne Beltway has been increasing continuously since the 1950s. Almost all sections, with the exception of a short stretch on the A1 between Kreuz Köln-West and 1km north of Köln-Lövenich (Expansion in progress there, estimated completion December 2013), have since been expanded to three lanes in each direction, but since more than 180,000 cars use at least part of the Autobahnring every day, traffic jams are a frequent occurrence. The section between the interchanges Kreuz Köln-Ost and Dreieck Heumar was expanded to four lanes in each direction in 2005, a first for North Rhine-Westphalia. In 2008 the section with four lanes in each direction has been extended to the interchange Köln-Dellbrück. Currently widening work is going on between Köln-Dellbrück and Köln-Mülheim. It is scheduled to be complete in autumn 2012. The A1 has mostly a speed limit of 100 km/h. It has recently been raised to 120 km/h northbound between Köln-Lövenich and Köln-Bocklemünd as well as between Kreuz Köln-Nord and Köln-Niehl. On the A4 the speed limit is 120 km/h. On the A3 there is a variable speed limit up to a maximum of 120 km/h.
In preparation for the 2006 FIFA World Cup the A 3 was outfitted with a traffic management system which is able to route traffic around congestion and construction sites.
Read more about this topic: Cologne Beltway
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