Copenhagen to continue as a roadworks mecca until 2027

Deputy mayor claims there’s simply too much to do

Aug 10, 2018

With all the Metro expansion, housing development and seemingly endless road maintenance going on in Copenhagen over the past few years, residents are no doubt wondering when it will all end.

Well, don’t hold your breath, as it may be a while yet.

The Danish capital’s infrastructure maintenance place was initially expected to be completed in five years, but a new report suggests it will continue to 2027.

“Not enough money has been set aside to keep up with the speed required. If we are to be finished by 2022, there will too many roads that need to be closed simultaneously, and traffic will simply grind to a halt,” Ninna Hedeager Olsen, the deputy mayor for technical and environmental issues, told DR Nyheder.

City Ring nearly done
An extension to the city’s roadworks period will not only make the municipality’s planning ability more flexible, but it will also allow for more co-ordinated work to avoid more roads being dug up at the same time.

Olsen admits that an extension isn’t ideal for drivers, cyclists or pedestrians, and she realises that many citizens are more probably growing weary of the road work and accompanying noise.

But there is at least one thing that residents of Copenhagen can look forward to – the completion of the City Ring Metro line, which is due to open in July 2019. Recently, the unsightly green wall surrounding the station at City Hall came down.