Efficient waterways: Ground-breaking ceremony for the new Erlangen lock

The construction of the new Erlangen lock on the Main-Danube Canal officially began with a symbolic ground-breaking ceremony on 23 October 2026. Together with the Federal Ministry of Transport, the Waterways Construction Office Aschaffenburg (Wasserstraßen-Neubauamt Aschaffenburg – WNA), as the contracting authority, and the contractors, the go-ahead was given for the waterways project.

The replacement of the Erlangen lock is a key element in ensuring the long-term capacity of the Main–Danube Canal. The existing lock was commissioned in the early 1970s. The new lock will ensure that the canal’s infrastructure is fit for the coming decades. The contract is being carried out by a collaboration comprising the STRABAG subsidiary ZÜBLIN and BAUER Spezialtiefbau GmbH. This is already the partners second lock project in the region: the team has been working on the replacement of the Kriegenbrunn lock since 2024.

The new lock will be constructed using a solid construction and designed with as few joints as possible to ensure the structure has a long service life. In addition to the construction of the new lock chamber, the contract also includes the inlet structure, the headwall, the outlet structure, side-mounted water-saving basins and a drainage channel for water management on the Main–Danube Canal. The new water-saving basins will enable a saving of around 60 per cent of water during each lockage operation.

A particular challenge of the project is that the work is being carried out whilst shipping operations continue. This ensures that the vital Main–Danube Canal transport route remains operational throughout the entire construction period.

Completion of the replacement structure is scheduled for 2033.