Baden-Württemberg's roads see fewer wrong-way drivers but persistent congestion in 2025
Baden-Württemberg's traffic alert service issued more than 63,000 traffic and hazard warnings in 2025, with the total reaching 63,170—nearly identical to the previous year's figure.
According to the state's Ministry of the Interior, Digitalization, and Local Government, most alerts once again pertained to federal highways. The A5 between Karlsruhe and Basel and the A8 between Stuttgart and Karlsruhe were particularly affected, primarily due to heavy traffic and long-term construction zones.
The year's longest traffic jam formed in August on the A8 toward Stuttgart, between Merklingen and Kirchheim unter Teck-Ost, where congestion stretched roughly 32 kilometers.
On the A5, the longest backup measured 24 kilometers, compared to a maximum of 25 kilometers the previous year. The number of reported disruptions on the A5 also declined by 223 (10,214 in 2024 versus 9,991 in 2025). Despite the decrease, the A5 remained the highway with the most incidents, followed by the A8 with 9,230 reports and the A81 with 8,316.
Beyond typical congestion alerts, the traffic service logged numerous hazard warnings. Over 42,000 reports involved people, animals, or objects on the roadway, including lost cargo, a wooden hut blocking a lane, and loose livestock. Wrong-way driver incidents slightly decreased to 371 cases, resulting in two fatalities.
The Ministry of the Interior emphasized that the state's central alert hub plays a crucial role in road safety, as warnings are broadcast by radio stations and integrated into navigation systems.
