Værkmestergade
Værkmestergade has had a turbulent history over the past few years, but the project is now coming to fruition.
iThe concept of an urban thoroughfare through the railway land is an old one, but the idea was finalised in connection with the sale of the site for the future Bruuns Galleri.
In this context, an agreement was reached in late December 2002 that the car park would be served by a new road between Spanien and Ringgaden.
Shortly after the shopping centre opened, the first half of the road was built: a shorter stretch between the car park and Frederiksbro. The stretch was one-way towards the shopping centre, and left turns were prohibited on the bridge. At the same time, the road was rather difficult to find and very steep.
These factors did not exactly contribute to the road’s success, and the project almost became something of a local legend in Aarhus.
Discussions then took place on how the road should be connected to Ringgaden. A few politicians advocated for a raised road over the railway line, connecting to Søren Frichsvej.
However, the discussion concluded that the road should remain on the south side of the railway line and follow it all the way to the Ringgaden Bridge. Here, the road merges with Ankersgade and ends at a traffic-light-controlled junction with Ringgaden.
Work on the Ringgaden Bridge began in September 2006 and is expected to be completed by the end of August 2007.
The project comprises an extension of the road from Frederiks Bridge to Ankersgade, a junction at Ankersgade and an increase in capacity at the junction on the Ringgade Bridge.
The latter roadworks have caused major traffic jams across the Ringgadebro in 2007.
The temporary ramp from Frederiks Bro to Værkmestergade had to be dismantled during 2006, i.e. long before the connection to Ringgadebroen was ready. This is because the ramps used to construct the bridge were to be reused for the bridges over the Århus Å, which are being built as part of the river’s restoration. The ramps are being used for the bridge over Grønnegade and the bridges at the Busgade breakthrough.
The future of Værkmestergade is still under discussion. The idea of extending the road to Åhavevej is still on the drawing board. Such an extension could relieve traffic on Marselis Boulevard and the southernmost section of Ringgade. Once the southern track of the light rail has been constructed via Ingerslevs Boulevard and Skanderborgvej, the Odderbanen track between Aarhus H and Gunnar Clausensvej could be decommissioned. This would free up space in the railway corridor for a further extension of Værkmestergade, enabling the road to connect with Christian Xs Vej via the ramp under Skanderborgvej. This would provide an efficient link to the Ringgadebroen from the south and could reduce traffic through Skanderborgvej and Harald Jensens Plads.