The choice of traffic main artery split the council in two: Large urban development project is at stake

Randers City Council Split Over Traffic Main Artery Project: Mega Urban Development Project at Stake

Although a decision was made several years ago, disagreements continue to fuel the debate.

Politicians in Randers agree that a new bridge over Randers Fjord is needed. However, they are not all in agreement on the route.

Normally, a bridge connects two places. But in Randers, the question of a new bridge connection over Randers Fjord has split the council in two.

A Climate Bridge or an East Bridge.

A majority of council politicians voted for the Climate Bridge in 2017, which is expected to be completed by 2030. However, the local list East Bridge has been trying for four years to convince politicians and residents that the alternative East Bridge is a better fit for Randers' future.

The question has been heatedly debated for years, and it is also a topic in this election campaign.

Although the Climate Bridge has been approved, the debate over the bridges and their economic and traffic implications frequently flares up in the council chamber in Randers.

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Mega Urban Development Project

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The majority of politicians point to the fact that the Climate Bridge will alleviate the current Randers Bridge, which is more trafficked than the Storebelt Bridge, and that the bridge will move traffic further out of the city center.

- The Climate Bridge can handle several things. It's not just about traffic that needs to be managed. It also needs to secure the city center, and therefore it's important to choose it. Partly for that reason, but also for Flodbyen, which is set to push forward the development of the inner city in Randers, says Claus Berggren, who is the Social Liberal mayor candidate in DR's Municipal Election (https://www.dr.dk/drtv/se/kommunekampen_-busbaner-og-oe_identitet_555709 ).

Social Liberal Claus Berggren believes that the Climate Bridge is a prerequisite for Randers to carry out the Flodbyen project, which is one of the largest in the country. (Photo: © Bo Amstrup, Ritzau Scanpix)

Flodbyen is one of Jutland's largest urban development projects (https://jyllands-posten.dk/indland/ECE13715373/stort-pensionsselskab-investerer-milliardbeloeb-i-et-af-landets-stoerste-byudviklingsprojekter-det-bliver-det-bedste-i-aps-historie-indtil-videre/ ). Here, a new neighborhood with room for 7-8,000 residents is set to rise in the current industrial harbor, which over the coming years will be transformed into a climate-friendly neighborhood.

Pension fund AP Pension has made a billion-dollar investment in the project, and according to a majority of councilors, the climate bridge is a crucial prerequisite for the project to come to life.

But Østbroen's mayoral and mayoral candidate, Erik Bo Andersen, does not buy Claus Berggren's arguments. Østbroen was founded before the last municipal election with the intention of scrapping the existing plans.

- The Climate Bridge has consequences for the neighborhoods that traffic will be forced through, says he.

According to Erik Bo Andersen, an East Bridge would provide a better traffic connection in Randers. (Photo: © Bo Amstrup, Ritzau Scanpix)

The two politicians are at odds over what the climate bridge will cost.

- That means that Claus and all those who vote for the climate bridge will have to find 792 million kroner in the municipal budget, says Erik Bo Andersen.

The rest of the majority estimates that the cost will be around 550 million kroner.

Both sides hope that the state will provide a subsidy for the construction of the respective bridges.

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Best and Cheapest

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Even when it comes to the need to secure the city center against storm surges and flooding, there is agreement.

But according to Erik Bo Andersen, it is also possible to establish an East Bridge and simultaneously secure further inward towards the city center.

- From a social economic perspective, the best and cheapest solution would be a plot outside of Udbyhøj, where the fjord starts. The Climate Bridge will only be four meters high, so it only secures a small part. Why not secure a little further out and secure from Udbyhøj to Langå, he says.

According to Claus Berggren, the plans for the Climate Bridge and Flodbyen are better than that.

- We are already in progress. We have climate-secured Justesen's Plan, which is now both a recreational area, where children can play, and a dam below, which takes the water. We continue with the climate bridge, which ensures that the water is led out, but that it does not flood the Flodbyen that we are building in the coming years.

In DR's podcast Candidate Party, the mayoral candidates debate some of the issues that fill the respective municipalities the most.

It sounds like several parties would like to see both bridges built in the future if possible.

The Unity List's mayoral candidate, Karina Hjort, does not want any of the bridges to be built. Instead, more investment should be made in public transportation.

In Candidate Party, you can learn more about what the different parties think about the Climate Bridge and the East Bridge.

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