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INSIDE GERMANY

Inside Germany: Gearing up for state elections and the German ‘Switzerlands’

From new polls showing the tight race for eastern state elections to a 'placeholder' surname and the Switzerlands of Germany, here's what we're talking about this week.

Published: 24 August 2024 11:07 CEST
Tourists in Germany's Sächsische Schweiz or Saxon Switzerland - the country's most famous Swiss area.
Tourists in Germany's Sächsische Schweiz or Saxon Switzerland - the country's most famous Swiss area. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/dpa-Zentralbild | Robert Michael

Inside Germany is our weekly look at some of the news, talking points and gossip in Germany that you might not have heard about. It’s published each Saturday and members can receive it directly to their inbox by going to their newsletter preferences or adding their email to the sign-up box in this article.

Election race in eastern Germany heats up

With just over a week before people in Thuringia and Saxony vote for a new state parliament, representative polls have captured the tense political mood.

The surveys, conducted on behalf of German broadcaster ARD, show that in Saxony, it’s a tight race between the conservative Christian Democrats (CDU) and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD). And in Thuringia the AfD is leading. 

READ ALSO: Far-right firebrand Björn Höcke draws crowds in eastern state

Saxony is currently governed by a coalition of CDU, SPD and Greens – a grouping that would no longer have a majority if the polls are correct.

According to polls, the CDU are set to secure 31 percent of the vote in Saxony, while the AfD is on course for 30 percent. The Sahra Wagenknecht (BSW) Alliance are the third strongest force with 14 percent of the vote. The polling institute puts the Social Democrats (SPD) at seven percent and the Greens at six percent. Die Linke (The Left Party) are currently on course to miss the five percent threshold to enter parliament.

In Thuringia, the AfD, with its controversial regional leader Björn Höcke, could emerge as the strongest force in the state elections, with the party currently polling at 30 percent. It’s followed by the CDU with 23 percent and the BSW with 17 percent. The Left Party would receive 13 percent and the SPD seven percent, the polls say. The Greens and the Free Democrats (FDP) are both polling on three percent. The Left are currently in a governing coalition with the SPD and Greens. 

Supporters gather as Björn Höcke, leader and top candidate of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the eastern German state of Thuringia, addresses an election campaign event in Apolda, eastern Germany on August 18, 2024.

Supporters gather as Björn Höcke, leader and top candidate of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in the eastern German state of Thuringia, addresses an election campaign event in Apolda, eastern Germany on August 18, 2024. Photo by JENS SCHLUETER / AFP

Alarmingly, support for Höcke and his party comes after high profile court cases in which he was fined twice for using a banned Nazi slogan. The state chapter of the AfD in the state has also been classed as extremist by Germany’s domestic intelligence agency. 

Yet many people are standing up to the far-right and sometimes in inventive ways. We reported last week how an orchestra group have brought their Lebenslaute (life noise) musical protests to Erfurt, the capital of Thuringia. 

READ ALSO: Why a German orchestra is using music to protest against the far-right

We’re yet to see exactly how the elections will turn out. The polls provide a snapshot of the political atmosphere but many people decide on their vote at the last minute. September is a key month for politics in Germany. And with Brandenburg holding state elections on September 22nd, all eyes are on the east. 

READ MORE: 

Tweet of the week  

We imagine ‘Mustermann’ could be one of the trickiest surnames to explain to German bureaucrats.

Why are many parts of Germany called “Switzerland”?

From the Sächsische Schweiz, Fränkische Schweiz to the Holsteinische Schweiz (Saxon Switzerland, Franconian Switzerland and Holstein Switzerland), many parts of Germany are named after the neighbouring country. 

Overall there are over 100 spots in Germany that have “Switzerland” – but why is that?

It comes down to Switzerland’s beauty. The country is known for its stunning landscapes, including gorgeous mountains, blue lakes and quaint villages. 

Similar landscape features can be found in Germany, and since some of these regions are said to be comparable to the beauty of Switzerland, they were given the nickname “Schweiz” (Switzerland) in the 19th century, according to a report in Germany’s RND this week.

At that time wealthy people preferred the Alps as a travel destination. So if a long journey to Switzerland was too arduous or too expensive for them, they travelled to similar areas in Germany such as Gößweinstein, Waischenfeld or Buttenheim, which became known as Franconian Switzerland. 

Artists and writers are said to have coined the term as early as the Romantic era. 

But there are also some “Switzerlands” in the lowlands of Germany, for example in Dithmarschen, East Frisia or Münsterland. A pleasant landscape or grazing cows were enough for some locals to make a comparison to Switzerland and add it to the region’s name.

Switzerland’s beauty is known around the world. There are also destinations in the likes of France, Poland, Israel, Namibia, New Zealand, Korea, Japan, Haiti, Martinique and the USA that have ‘Switzerland’ slotted into their names. 

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LIVING IN GERMANY

How safe are bridges in Germany?

After a bridge collapsed in the eastern German city of Dresden, experts say it's a wake-up call to sort out the county's ailing infrastructure. How bad is the situation?

Published: 12 September 2024 10:46 CEST
How safe are bridges in Germany?

It could have been a major disaster. A section of the Carolabrücke (Carola Bridge) in Dresden crashed into the River Elbe around 3 am on Wednesday. 

Miraculously, no one was injured. The last tram had crossed the bridge at about 2:50 am, just a few minutes before the structure collapsed. 

The fire service and engineers have been working tirelessly to try to secure the remaining parts of the bridge in case it crumbles. 

“There is still an acute danger to life and risk of collapse,” fire brigade spokesman Michael Klahre said on Wednesday afternoon. 

READ ALSO: Bridge partially collapses in German city of Dresden?

Are other bridges in Germany at risk of collapsing?

Experts have been warning for years that much of Germany’s public infrastructure badly needs updated. Following the collapse of a motorway bridge in Genoa in 2018, architect Richard J. Dietrich told a German newspaper: “Our bridges are rotting dangerously, and the risk of collapse can no longer be ruled out.”

Now the Dresden bridge incident is being treated as a warning for officials to act quickly. 

Bridge expert Martin Mertens slammed the poor condition of many large bridges across Germany.

The professor from Bochum University of Applied Sciences said largely all bridges built before 1980 are “problem patients”, adding that this is due to structures being thrown up in the construction boom after the Second World War. 

Mertens used a play on the German idiom, “Es ist fünf vor zwölf” – which translates literally to “it’s five to 12” and means “it’s almost too late” – to illustrate the crisis.

“Es ist fünf nach zwölf” (it is five past 12), he said, urging politicians to act now. 

The German Association of Towns and Municipalities has called for an “infrastructure investment offensive”. Managing director André Berghegger told German newspapers that local authorities lack the money urgently needed for renovations. 

Wolfgang Schubert-Raab, President of the Central Association of the German Construction Industry, described the bridge collapse in Dresden as a “sad symbol of Germany’s infrastructure”, which highlighted an urgent need for action.

A view of the Carola Bridge in Dresden on Thursday.

A view of the Carola Bridge in Dresden on Thursday. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Robert Michael

How is the safety of bridges checked?

Bridges are tested fairly regularly, with each one undergoing a general inspection every six years. This usually takes place while traffic is still running and includes an inspection of all components. Three years later, a less complex ‘check-up’ is carried out to test the structure. 

Dieter Westerkamp, Head of Technology and Society at the Association of German Engineers, told Germany’s DPA this is sufficient. “In view of the low number of incidents involving around 130,000 bridges in Germany, this cycle seems to be proving its worth,” he said.

Meanwhile, each of the almost 40,000 bridges under the responsibility of the federal government regularly receives a grade based on these tests. In the most recent overview report by the Federal Highway Research Institute, almost 2,300 bridges received a rating of ‘very good’ for their condition. Around 200 were rated as ‘unsatisfactory’.

That means the majority of federal bridges are in good or satisfactory condition – although clearly there is need for improvement. 

“If the structural inspection reveals any impairment of stability or traffic safety, appropriate measures are of course taken immediately to ensure that the necessary safety is maintained,” the report states.

The Federal Highway Research Institute also tests the structural performance of bridges, i.e. the extent to which they can withstand traffic loads. According to these tests, numerous structures in western Germany in particular have exceeded their lifespan.

In response to this finding, at the beginning of 2022 Transport Minister Volker Wissing announced a package of measures for faster bridge modernisation. A total of 8,000 of around 28,000 motorway bridges have to be modernised in the long term.

Based on a survey of local authorities, the German Institute of Urban Affairs estimated in a report last year that every second road bridge is not in good condition. This means that their condition is worse than that of federal bridges.

View of the the partially collapsed Carola Bridge (Carolabruecke) over the Elbe river in the city centre of Dresden, Saxony, eastern Germany, on September 11, 2024.

View of the the partially collapsed Carola Bridge (Carolabruecke) over the Elbe river in the city centre of Dresden, Saxony, eastern Germany, on September 11, 2024. Photo by Odd ANDERSEN / AFP

Furthermore, there are around 3,000 bridges under the responsibility of German states that are in need of modernisation. However, there is no centralised recording of the condition of bridges at state or municipal level.

READ ALSO: How Germany wants to speed up infrastructure projects

A refurbishment programme is also underway at Deutsche Bahn. Almost half of the rail operator’s 25,700 bridges are more than 100 years old.

By 2029, DB wants to have completely or partially renewed 2,000 bridges. “Deutsche Bahn’s bridges are safe and are regularly and systematically inspected and tested,” the rail operator said.

What’s the reaction to the Dresden bridge collapse?

Investigators are trying to figure out the cause of the collapse. Police do not believe it was the result of a criminal act or other external factors.

One assumption is that corrosion was a major factor, said Steffen Marx, professor at the Institute for Concrete Construction at TU Dresden.

Built in 1971, the concrete structure was one of the first major constructions of its kind in East Germany, Marx said. 

The bridge, which is one of the most important traffic arteries in Dresden city centre, has long been considered in need of an upgrade. Parts of it have already been renovated for car traffic in recent years, and the focus was set to be on the now-collapsed bridge span in the coming year. 

Transport Minister Wissing pointed out in the budget debate in the Bundestag on Wednesday that more than €9 billion would be available for investment in federal trunk roads and bridges in the coming year.

However, when it comes to the Carola Bridge in Dresden, Wissing said that it was a municipal responsibility and therefore had nothing to do with the federal budget.

“You can see from this bridge how dangerous it is when infrastructure is not carefully invested in,” said Wissing.

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