According to Deputy State Governor Anton Lang and Mayor Andrea Heinrich (both SPÖ), there will now be an expansion rather than a bypass. Lang on Wednesday: “I am optimistic that we will get this done before 2030.”
He recalled that in 2018 he committed to starting the expansion of the B320 in the next ten years. “Number one was the Trautenfels intersection, we will gradually work through all the points. It won’t be cheap, we already know that, but I’m more optimistic than ever that we’ll get it done.” Representatives from the region, communities and business are on board. “The B320 is a thoroughfare, but it’s also regarding making pedestrian and cycling traffic more attractive.” And: It’s regarding preserving local recreation areas and sensitive areas that are important for climate protection, such as the moorland landscapes that are common in the Enns Valley. “Everyone has to support what we’re doing, but it’s being built,” said Lang. It will take one and a half to two years until the plans are on the table. But: It will take longer to plan than to build, it is simply a very challenging construction.
50 to 60 million euros costs
The costs are likely to amount to 50 to 60 million euros, it was said on Wednesday at the presentation of the project in the Liezen town hall. Perhaps construction might begin as early as 2026 to 2027, said Lang, who is responsible for traffic in Styria. The concept would also include appropriate measures for pedestrian and bicycle traffic.
According to Mayor Heinrich, when the process started in autumn 2022, several variants were under discussion. This one is now being examined. “Each bypass option would have taken at least 15 years, but only if we had all agreed. One would have gone through a Natura 2000 area. So our soil is not sealed and the Liezen business location is not bypassed.” Because of the settlements in the B320 area, she is sure that noise protection measures are also planned.
No new construction of bypass roads
State Construction Director Andreas Tropper announced that the secondary road network might be used during construction work, but there should be no new construction of bypass roads. And construction work would be stopped during major events such as the Night Race in Schladming or during major holiday shift changes. The concept – costing around 600,000 euros – will be on the table in detail by autumn 2025. There will be a mixture of four lanes of road, improved intersections and the improvement of the roundregarding in the east of Liezen, the integration of the federal highways B113 and B138 and the improvement of traffic light controls.
Compared to the calamities of the past 30 years with blockades, demonstrations and arrests of demonstrators because of the planned and then canceled Ennstal expressway, the presentation on Thursday was really harmonious. Lassinger Mayor Engelbert Schaunitzer – whose community is struggling with “toll refugees” from the nearby A9 and a lack of speed limits – remembered during the presentation that he himself had been arrested at a demonstration as a young man. The mayor of Irdning-Donnersbachtal, Herbert Guggernig, also expressed concern regarding “toll refugees” and ventilated tonnage restrictions. You also have to think regarding routing over the foothills of the Alps on the Pyhrnautobahn (A9). But he is very happy that there is finally a solution: “I’ll bring a liter of home-made rowanberry schnapps to the opening,” he announced to Lang, head of the transport department.
