ADAC traffic jam forecast for December 22nd to 26th
The ADAC expects more traffic and traffic jams on the autobahns around the Christmas holidays than at Christmas 2020. At that time, a Germany-wide partial lockdown had severely restricted private travel. The congestion level of earlier years will, however, probably not be reached.
Trips abroad, visits to relatives and trips to local recreation areas are permitted with the exception of individual hotspots. Politicians’ appeal to stay at home for Christmas and the lack of planning security are likely to deter many people from traveling again this year.
The streets of the metropolitan areas are also unlikely to reach their load limits as much as in previous years, although the rush hour traffic around the big cities has been almost as heavy for months as it was before the pandemic. Fewer last-minute gift hunters are expected, partly because Christmas markets are banned in many places.
The busiest days are Wednesday, December 22nd and Thursday, December 23rd, when the Christmas holidays begin in almost all federal states. The streets get crowded, especially on the afternoons of the two days. The Christmas days themselves are always less congested than most of the other days of the year. The ADAC expects quiet traffic, especially on Christmas Eve (Friday, December 24th) and on the first public holiday (Saturday, December 25th).
Ski holiday traffic in the direction of the Alpine countries is also likely to be lower than in previous years. On Boxing Day (Sunday, December 26th), many drivers return from visiting relatives and families. Then patience is required, especially in the afternoon.
These are the most important traffic jams during the Christmas holidays:
• Greater Hamburg, Berlin, Cologne, Frankfurt and Munich areas
• A 1 Cologne – Dortmund – Bremen – Hamburg
• A 2 Dortmund – Hanover – Braunschweig – Berlin
• A 3 Cologne – Frankfurt – Nuremberg – Passau
• A 4 Kirchheimer Dreieck – Erfurt – Dresden
• A 5 Hattenbacher Dreieck – Karlsruhe
• A 6 Heilbronn – Nuremberg
• A 7 Hamburg – Hanover and Würzburg – Füssen / Reutte
• A 8 Karlsruhe – Stuttgart – Munich – Salzburg
• A 9 Munich – Nuremberg
• A 10 Berliner Ring
• A 24 Hamburg – Berlin
• A 61 Mönchengladbach – Koblenz – Ludwigshafen
• A 81 Stuttgart – Singen
• A 93 Inntal triangle – Kufstein
• A 95 / B 2 Munich – Garmisch-Partenkirchen
• A 99 bypass Munich
Car trips abroad are easier this year than a year ago. However, there will not be many and long traffic jams. A little more travel time should be planned on the highways to the winter sports resorts (Tauernautobahn, Brenner and Gotthard route). At all German external borders, both when leaving the neighboring country and when entering Germany, waiting times can generally be expected due to increased controls. The respectively applicable regulations (usually proof of vaccination or recovery certificates or test requirements) are mostly randomly checked. The controls focus on the main border crossings on the motorways.
– .
