Bestwiger municipal council calls for further steps for new construction of the L776n near Nuttlar
Bestwig/Nuttlar. The municipality of Bestwig is using its municipal statement on the new construction of the B7n from Nuttlar to Brilon to demand the immediate continuation of the planning approval procedure for the new construction of the L776 Nuttlar/Evenkopf to the A46 feeder road (B480n). This has now been unanimously decided by the members of the Bestwig municipal council.
Background: As part of the planning for the new construction of the B7n, the municipality of Bestwig can comment on the environmental impact insofar as its area of responsibility is affected. The municipal administration's proposal: a municipal statement should support the planned construction project - and also put pressure on the continuation of the planning approval procedure for the L776n.
This proposal met with unanimous support from the council members. What's more, the CDU and SPD recalled the many years of efforts by politicians and the administration to achieve effective relief for the traffic-plagued Rüthener Straße in Nuttlar by rebuilding the L776 from Evenkopf to the B480n. Flashback: The L776n was actually supposed to be finished by the time the A46 motorway opened. The reality is different: The planning approval procedure alone was only initiated in 2013. Following several objections, the state organisation Straßen.NRW announced that the construction project would have to be put on hold due to a lack of planning capacity. This "deep sleep" continues to this day: Even after the opening of the A46 motorway in 2019, years have already passed without any tangible progress being made.
The council factions have never made friends with this situation: Markus Sommer (CDU) recalled the unanimous council resolution from 2016, which called for the planning approval process to be continued. And secondly, the CDU parliamentary group proposed a modified route variant in 2021: the construction work should only begin after the Forsthaus bend. This would make it possible to dispense with an 800 metre long extension from Evenkopf to Rocken, a large Eidmecketal bridge, the demolition of the listed former forester's lodge and the rerouting of a farm track. According to Markus Sommer, Straßen.NRW had responded favourably to this - but nothing had happened.
On behalf of the SPD parliamentary group, Michael Menke pointed out that the Social Democrats had invited the then Transport Minister Mike Groschek back in 2013 to see the situation for himself. At the same time, he regretted that there had already been an accident involving a child due to the catastrophic traffic situation. Judith Clancy (Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen) also agreed with the proposal to put pressure on the continuation of the planning approval procedure for the L776n - for the residents of Rüthener Straße, the standstill was "very sobering and also dangerous".
In its resolution, the municipal council unanimously called on the state authority Straßen.NRW to make further progress on this project by rescheduling the Forsthaus curve as quickly as possible, to hold a hearing in order to obtain the planning approval decision and thus ultimately to carry out the L776n construction project. The municipality of Bestwig views the continuation of the B7n - the actual reason for the statement - positively: this transport route is very important for the positive development of the region. The continuation of the A46 as the B7n would benefit the population and strengthen tourism and the economy in the region.