1175 Floods in Switzerland, southern Germany & Austria

Hi all,

Not sure if anyone is planning to travel to or from Italy by car in the next few weeks, but I noticed on the World News this morning that there have been severe floods in parts of Switzerland (Luzern, Bern, Brienz) and in southern Germany and Austria.

It would be safest to check travel details for all those countries prior to setting off in case any relevant motorways or byroads are closed. Apparently some Swiss motorways were affected but I didn't discover which ones those were.

The rains now seem to have stopped so at least it shouldn't get any worse for the time being.

Cheers,
Steph

Category
Travel & Holiday Advice

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Wed, 08/24/2005 - 09:25

According to NZZ Online - whatever that is

"Travel information service m>Viasuissem> estimated that up to 50 roads had been closed or partially blocked, with cantons Lucerne, Obwalden, Nidwalden, Schwyz and the Bernese Oberland bearing the brunt of the disruptions.

The worst affected highways on Monday [22nd] were the A4 motorway between Küssnacht and Goldau, the A14 between Rotsee and Gisikon-Root, the A6 between Muri and Rubigen and the A8 between Interlaken and Spiez. These routes were closed in both directions.

To make matters worse, many minor roads, particularly around the A4, have also been closed, making it difficult for motorists to find alternative routes.

Up to 110mm of rain fell in parts of central and western Switzerland by Sunday and more wet weather has been forecast.

Viasuisse advised travellers in the most badly affected regions to stay at home if at all possible or to seek information about the state of roads and rail links before setting off on journeys."

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 08/25/2005 - 08:15

Does anyone know where we can get up to date travel information for Germany/Switzerland/Austria in view of the floods.

We are driving to Italy leaving tomorrow evening. Today's paper says that some passes are shut between Switzerland and Italy.

I have tried the AA but they can't help. The info used to be on teletext but I can't find it now.

Any help appreciated.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 08/25/2005 - 08:50

Hi,

Found the following page (for Bavaria) on google for German traffic situation - note that the roads on the bottom of the page are closed through flooding or landslides. Not sure about translation options online (haven't needed them yet lol), but at least the road numbers should help you.

[url]http://www.verkehrsinformation.de/index.php?tmp=search&region=2[/url]

Haven't used this one before but I guess it would be up to date? Perhaps someone else has used it?

[url]http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichelin/gbr/dyn/controller/Driving_directions[/url]

If you have Sky TV, there's a channel called Euro News which does feature the countries & regions involved. I'd also keep local radio traffic news on while driving!

Sorry couldn't be more specific... Have a safe trip!

Stephanie

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 08/25/2005 - 09:26

[QUOTE=Flyingpigs]Does anyone know where we can get up to date travel information for Germany/Switzerland/Austria in view of the floods.

We are driving to Italy leaving tomorrow evening. Today's paper says that some passes are shut between Switzerland and Italy.

I have tried the AA but they can't help. The info used to be on teletext but I can't find it now.

Any help appreciated.[/QUOTE]

Try

[url]http://www.viasuisse.ch/eng/nutzen/infos.htm[/url]

This leads to [amomngst others]
[url]http://www.stauradio.ch/html/verkehrsinfo.cfm[/url]
I know its in german, but 'frei' means 'open' and 'gesperrt' means 'closed'

Good Luck

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Thu, 08/25/2005 - 10:09

Hi,

at the moment the Italian TV shows reports that are not very encouraging. Although today the weather has improved, many roads and motorways in Switzerland and Austria are still blocked. Maybe you could travel through France and access Italy via Mont Blanc or Frejus.

I wish you a safe journey.

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/26/2005 - 04:23

Thanks for all your help. Think we will try the route through the Brenner Pass.

Have found website that gives links to the main European countries' traffic reports (even England):

[url="http://www.tiscover.at"]www.tiscover.at[/url]

Then selecte route planning.

Got to get packing now!

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/26/2005 - 08:38

Here are some more expressions to keep you going in German speaking regions - just in case you come across some signs:

Hochwasser - floods
Erdrutsch - landslide (a few have happened)
gesperrt - closed (as Alan pointed out)
Umleitung - diverted traffic

I found this link for news on Tyrol where many areas seem hardly hit or even completely unaffected, so you should be able to get through if the weather holds: [url]http://serviceline.tirol.at/[/url]

Have a safe trip! :)

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/26/2005 - 08:39

Does anyone know how high the Danube is running now?

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/26/2005 - 08:55

[QUOTE=Sano]Does anyone know how high the Danube is running now?[/QUOTE]

Well, according to yahoo Germany the highest level of Danube and Isar was last night and the rivers don't seem to rise anymore at the moment. In some cities which were hit earlier this week they've started to relax.

Provided it doesn't rain any more...

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 08/26/2005 - 08:58

[QUOTE=Iona]Well, according to yahoo Germany the highest level of Danube and Isar was last night and the rivers don't seem to rise anymore at the moment. In some cities which were hit earlier this week they've started to relax.

Provided it doesn't rain any more...[/QUOTE]

Thanks.

Hopefully the rains will hold off.