Waldeck-Frankenberg district and HSK renew K76 and K64

The districts of Waldeck-Frankenberg and Hochsauerlandkreis have realised the fundamental renewal of the district road K 76 (Hesse, district of Waldeck-Frankenberg) and the K 64 (North Rhine-Westphalia, Hochsauerlandkreis) in an exemplary cross-border joint project. The aim was to increase road safety and at the same time fulfil the highest requirements for drinking water and environmental protection. The excellent and uncomplicated cooperation between the districts and the respective approval authorities deserves special mention here.

Planning and financing
The initiative for the renovation was sealed by an expansion agreement concluded in September/October 2020. Once the Waldeck-Frankenberg district council had released the budget funds for 2025, implementation could begin.

The Hochsauerland district took the lead for the project, which covered a total length of 1.896 km - 1.351 km of which was in the Hochsauerland district and 0.545 km in the Waldeck-Frankenberg district. The original plan envisaged an earlier start to construction, but the schedule had to be adjusted due to difficulties in acquiring land on the Westphalian side. The construction project was put out to tender in autumn 2024 and the contract was then awarded at the end of 2024. Construction was scheduled to begin in spring 2025 and was then realised.

Focus on groundwater protection
The project was of particular importance due to the course of the district road through the sensitive drinking water protection area Zone II "Marsberg-Vasbeck". Strict groundwater protection requirements were defined here in close consultation with the Arnsberg district government, the Kassel regional council and the responsible lower water authorities.

In order to ensure continuous construction without technical interruptions at the state border, the Westphalian requirements were transferred to the entire section of the route, including the Hessian part, with the agreement of all parties involved. This is not a matter of course, especially as water law falls under the jurisdiction of the respective federal state and different requirements have to be met depending on the federal state. Compromises had to be found here without jeopardising the protected status.

Technical implementation
The aim of the construction work was to increase the existing carriageway width from around 5 metres to a standard width of 6 metres in order to better accommodate agricultural traffic. In the course of the work, bend radii were also adjusted and the drainage situation optimised.

The expansion was carried out almost exclusively by means of high installation (embankment) in order to minimise earthworks in the sensitive subsoil. In the widening areas, a special, high-density geosynthetic clay liner was applied after removal of the topsoil in order to prevent the seepage of harmful substances.

The surface water from the road was drained over a wide area via verges and newly created 1.25 metre wide drainage troughs. Retention and infiltration via the revitalised soil zone was made possible by means of barrages in the troughs. In addition, contamination with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was detected in the road body by the Hochsauerland district, which was professionally removed and recycled along its entire length.

Caption: Successful cross-border joint project - the participants from the Waldeck-Frankenberg district and the Hochsauerland district present the fundamentally renewed district road: (from left to right) Adolf Scheuermann, District Road Construction Officer for the Waldeck-Frankenberg district; Swen Meier, Managing Director of Fa. Rohde; Karl-Friedrich Frese, First District Councillor/ Head of the Building Department, Waldeck-Frankenberg District; Gerlinde Strathmann, Head of the Building/ Cadastre/ Environment Department, Hochsauerlandkreis District; Volker Becker, Mayor of Diemelsee Municipality; Thomas Grosche, District Administrator, Hochsauerlandkreis District; Matthias Koch, Mayor of Marsberg; Sebastian Schmitz, Head of the District Road Construction Department, Hochsauerlandkreis District; Dirk Wagner, Hessen Mobil. (Photo: District of Waldeck-Frankenberg)

Keywords:

Building department District road construction in Waldeck-Frankenberg