Groningen’s temporary crossing beside the Visserbrug is scheduled to be removed on Friday, 25 September, leaving cyclists and pedestrians without that connection for approximately four weeks. Its return is expected on 23 October, according to Groninger Internet Courant’s report, which cites the municipality.
For anyone who has made the crossing part of their route to lectures, work or home, the immediate task is to plan a different way across the water before Friday morning.
The connection links the Visserstraat and Hoge der A side with the Verlengde Visserstraat and Lage der A side. The original Visserbrug is already out of service. This closure concerns the temporary bridge that has kept the route available to people walking and cycling.
The temporary structure needs substantial maintenance because it has been used for longer and more intensively than anticipated, GIC reports. It will be taken elsewhere for the work, and no replacement temporary crossing will be available during that period. The expected return date should therefore be treated as a planning estimate rather than a guaranteed reopening.
OOG’s reporting on 24 September adds that the bridge has opened and closed more often than expected and has already been taken out of use twice in recent months because of faults. Inspections identified maintenance needed to keep it operating safely and reliably.
A nearby alternative to investigate is the A-brug, between A-straat and Brugstraat. Groningen Bereikbaar used this crossing as the official diversion for pedestrians and cyclists when the original Visserbrug closed in July 2024. That is useful geographical context, but the 2024 announcement does not establish the current diversion. Check the signs on your approach and the latest traffic information before relying on that route.
Use Groningen Bereikbaar’s live traffic map to check your whole journey. A route that avoids Visserbrug can still encounter other works. Enter your actual destination and check the final approach, especially if you are travelling to a building you have only recently learned to find.
For your first trip after the closure, allow extra time without assuming a fixed number of additional minutes. The difference will depend on where you start, which crossing you use and whether you are walking or cycling. Checking the alternative in daylight can also make a late return home easier.
If you use a wheelchair, mobility scooter or adapted bicycle, ask specifically about the accessible diversion. The municipality lists 14 050 as its contact number on the Visserbrug project page. Explain your starting point and destination so the question concerns the route you actually need.
There are two separate timelines to follow. The maintenance of the temporary bridge is expected to take about a month. The permanent replacement is a much larger project: the municipality says investigation showed that restoring the old bridge deck was not feasible, so an entirely new bridge is required. Its published programme currently places construction between February and October 2027, followed by handover in November 2027.
The dates to keep in your calendar are:
- 25 September 2026: scheduled removal of the temporary crossing.
- 23 October 2026: expected return of the temporary bridge, subject to the maintenance schedule.
- November 2027: planned handover of the permanent replacement under the municipality’s current programme.
Before your first journey on Friday, check the latest notice and choose your crossing. Keep the temporary bridge’s expected return date in your calendar, then verify reopening before switching back to your old route.
