Overview
- Former transport ministers Andreas Scheuer and Volker Wissing, along with ex–state secretary Oliver Luksic, were called as witnesses before the NRW parliamentary inquiry.
- Andreas Scheuer told lawmakers he has no concrete recollection of the abrupt closure, citing delegated handling of individual projects and his lack of access to ministry files at the end of his term.
- The inquiry is examining how the Federal Ministry of Transport and North Rhine-Westphalia coordinated information and decisions around the emergency shutdown.
- Oliver Luksic said the earlier-than-planned opening was enabled by functional procurement and a speed bonus, calling the pace in Lüdenscheid exceptional compared with elsewhere in Germany.
- The A45 break has diverted about 20,000 vehicles daily, including roughly 6,000 trucks, straining Lüdenscheid and the region; Scheuer also pointed to about 2,500 bridges, or roughly 11 percent, rated in concerning condition nationally.