S 10: Construction work for the northern section begins

“The history of the S 10 can be compared to the series ‘Good times, bad times’. Many episodes, ups and downs, but in the end everything will be fine,” said Johanna Jachs happily at the groundbreaking ceremony for the penultimate section of the S 10 between Freistadt and Rainbach.

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The history of the Mühlviertler Expressway goes back to initial planning in the 1970s. At that time, the motorway was “only” intended as a feeder for commuters into the central area. The meaning of the street has now changed completely. We hear again and again that it is a lifeline for the Lower Mühlviertel. Economically in particular, the northern section of the S 10 that is now being built is expected to bring a significant upswing. Especially when the last section up to the border is finished.

The seven-kilometer-long route will primarily relieve pressure on Rainbach as a western bypass and will be completed in mid-2027. Asfinag is investing 346 million euros in the new route. This additional S10 section begins at the Freistadt Nord junction and ends north of Rainbach. The planned route also bypasses the town of Vierzwei and then joins the existing B 310 again. Without S 10 North, according to forecasts, around 19,400 cars would drive through the center of Rainbach every day in 2035. With the S 10 North there will be fewer than 1,500 per day.

Ecological compensation areas

Ecological compensation measures are also part of the project: “Our goal is to always bring mobility, traffic safety and the protection of people and the environment together. This is particularly true for the construction of a new route,” says Hartwig Hufnagl, CEO of Asfinag . Mobility State Councilor Günther Steinkellner adds: “The S 10 is not only a high-level infrastructure that promises regional traffic relief, but also a symbol of a Europe growing together. In the not too distant future, the economic areas of Berlin, Dresden and Linz will be more closely linked to one another – assuming an eastern bypass in Linz.”

Tunnel is blown up

As soon as construction begins, the Asfinag miners have to blast the one-kilometer-long “Tunnel Fourteen” into the Mühlviertler granite. The route continues west from Apfoltern to Kranklau, where the Summerauer district road is crossed and the Rainbach semi-junction is created. Further north we cross the old horse-drawn railway line and Hörschläger Straße before the bypass joins the existing B 310 again shortly before Kerschbaum.

Closing the gap around 2030

The D3 motorway on the Czech side up to the state border should be completed and opened to traffic as early as 2026, South Bohemia’s district captain Martin Kuba recently told the OÖN during a tour of the construction site near Český Krumlov. The construction progress on the Czech side is an order for those responsible in Austria to make progress with the implementation of the 16 kilometer long S10 section from Freistadt to the border. According to current planning status, the S10 between Rainbach and the state border will be completed at the beginning of the next decade, said Governor Thomas Stelzer to his counterpart. This is supported by the fact that the section between Freistadt-Nord and Rainbach began this year and should be opened to traffic in spring 2027. At the same time, Asfinag is working on the submission project up to the state border. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2028 and will be opened to traffic around two and a half years later.

Of course, the gap to Prague – and thus on to Berlin and the Baltic Sea – will not be closed so quickly in the Czech Republic either. The reason is problems on an approximately 50 kilometer long section in the Central Bohemia district.

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