On September 11, 2024, one of the four bridges crossing the Elbe river in Dresden collapsed. It was the Carola Bridge in the world-famous baroque Old Town. The fact that there were no fatalities or injuries is nothing short of a miracle.

The reason for the collapse was quickly identified. The steel used to build the bridge between 1967 and 1971 was badly corroded and cracked.

It is estimated that there are around 130,000 bridges in Germany. Almost 40,000 of them are on highways (Autobahn) and interstate roads. According to the Federal Ministry of Transport, around 5,000 of these bridges are in urgent need of repair or need to be demolished and rebuilt.

In 2024, €4.6 billion ($5.01 bn) was budgeted for the renovation of highways, interstate roads and the bridges connecting them. A total of €5 billion had been earmarked for this purpose in the budget discussions for 2025 that failed once the previous German government collapsed. This sum, the federally owned Autobahn-GmbH believes, is insufficient.

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It is not only bridges and roads that need to be renovated, but also ageing railroads, energy and water systems, telecommunications, school buildings, and hospitals. Infrastructure has been neglected for decades. "Our country is running on empty," warned Lars Klingbeil, co-chairman of the........

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