A key A1 motorway crossing over the Rhine in Leverkusen was completely closed on Monday morning following a series of dangerous incidents. Massive chunks of ice began falling from the pylons of the new bridge onto the roadway, damaging several vehicles and leading to collisions. Police ordered a traffic blockade in both directions, causing massive traffic jams across the North Rhine-Westphalia region on the day of traditional Carnival celebrations.
Complete Blockade of the A1 Motorway
The bridge over the Rhine was closed in both directions due to falling ice, affecting thousands of drivers in Germany.
Vehicle Damages and Collisions
Massive ice slabs struck cars, causing material losses and dangerous maneuvers on the slippery surface.
Structural Recurrence
This is already the third incident involving ice on this new structure within a year, raising questions about design flaws.
On Monday, 16 February 2026, a serious incident occurred on the new bridge over the Rhine in Leverkusen, a key part of the A1 motorway. Heavy snowfall and rapid temperature changes led to ice formation on the high pylons of the structure. Pylons became a source of danger as chunks of ice breaking off from them began falling directly onto passing cars. According to police reports, at least several vehicles were damaged, and three collisions occurred on the route as drivers attempted to avoid being hit by ice. Uniformed services decided to immediately halt traffic, cutting off one of Germany's most important transport arteries, used by over 100,000 vehicles daily. The new bridge in Leverkusen was opened in 2024 as a replacement for the old, destroyed structure. Similar problems with icing on pylons of modern cable-stayed bridges have been noted before, including on bridges in Denmark and Canada, raising questions about de-icing systems for such structures.The situation was particularly difficult due to the Rosenmontag period, the culmination of Carnival in the Rhineland, when recreational traffic is traditionally higher. Police officers advised drivers to avoid the entire Leverkusen area by taking wide detours, redirecting traffic to alternative crossings and bypasses. This is already the third case of ice falling from this structure in the past year – similar events occurred in January 2025 and at the beginning of this year. However, this time the scale of damage and rapidly changing weather forced the road operator to fully block the route for many hours. „We could not rule out further dangerous situations, so the complete closure of the bridge was the only responsible decision to protect drivers' lives.” — Cologne Police Spokesperson Only before noon, after conditions stabilized and the ice was removed, police announced the gradual restoration of traffic on the A1 route. 100 000 — vehicles per day use the Leverkusen bridgeCourse of the Incident in Leverkusen: 16 February, 05:30 — First Reports; 16 February, 07:00 — Complete Blockade; 16 February, 09:00 — Route Reopening; 16 February, 14:45 — Damage Summary