Germany’s motoring association ADAC forecasts record traffic jams and extended waits at land borders from Friday 24 July to Sunday 26 July as the second summer-holiday wave rolls out of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Netherlands. The association explicitly flags “Grenzkontrollen: Wartezeiten möglich”—internal Schengen checks that remain in place at all German borders until at least 15 September 2026. More than 1,000 construction sites and multiple full motorway closures compound the congestion. Peak pressure is expected on the A3 (Netherlands–Cologne–Frankfurt), A8 (Stuttgart–Munich) and the Alpine transit corridors towards Austria and Italy. Truck traffic faces an additional Saturday summer ban between 07:00 and 20:00, pushing freight movements into weekday windows. For business travellers and corporate shuttle services the message is clear: avoid Friday afternoon departures, allow several extra hours for cross-border drives and monitor the Federal Police app for real-time queue lengths. Mobility managers moving assignees by road should book flexible hotel rates and consider rail alternatives where possible. ADAC notes that return traffic is already rising as schools in Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland approach the end of their break. The overlap of outbound and inbound flows increases the risk of missed flights at Frankfurt and Munich hubs, both critical for inter-continental assignments. Employers operating pan-European field-service teams should review duty-of-care protocols: heat, traffic stress and driver-hour limits amplify safety risks. The association recommends scheduling meetings mid-week, packing water supplies and using hands-free traffic alerts.
Source: ADAC
