Overview

• NRW Minister-President Hendrik Wüst called planned budget shifts "incomprehensible" and "counterproductive" after Berlin reported a roughly €15 billion shortfall for federal roads in 2026–2029.
• An Autobahn GmbH financing and realization plan identifies 74 expansion or new-build projects with unresolved funding, with construction approvals possible only if budget lines are increased.
• Exposure in North Rhine-Westphalia includes 29 listed schemes such as A1 widening near Hamm, six-lane upgrades on the A40, A3 and A45 expansions, A57 and A59 works, and the proposed A445 link.
• NRZ reports an internal list of nearly 30 NRW measures with existing or expected building rights that may be denied construction approval; the impact on Duisburg’s Kreuz Kaiserberg remains undetermined, according to Autobahn GmbH.
• The A1 Eifel gap is estimated at about €730 million across three sections, one of which is under BUND litigation before the Federal Administrative Court, while Rhineland-Palatinate leaders and business groups urge the federal government to press ahead and Greens question the cost-benefit.