Rijkswaterstaat has started the tendering process for the maintenance of the sunken road in the Southern Ring Road in Groningen, part of the implementation project Approach Ring South (ARZ).
Implementation Project Approach Ring South
The Approach Ring South is a large-scale infrastructure project in which the southern ring road of Groningen was completely renewed. This main gateway to the city began to clog due to the significant growth that the city of Groningen is experiencing. The reconstruction of the southern ring road improves accessibility, traffic flow, livability, and safety.
Additionally, it creates a more attractive urban landscape, with one of the highlights being the sunken road Groningen: a 1.1 km long national road with a closed-open-closed-open (DODO) construction on which the southern plantsoen has been built. This beautiful green area connects the neighborhoods Oosterpoort and the Linie, and also the two parts of the Sterrebos (separated since the 1960s by the construction of the southern ring road) are once again connected.
The Sunken Road Groningen
The sunken road Groningen (VDL-G) is a national road with 3 covers, due to the mentioned DODO construction. The closed sections have lengths of 176 m, 245 m, and 240 m. For this reason, the VDL-G is not a tunnel, but an open trough construction and complies with the guidelines for open infrastructure and not tunnel legislation (Act on Additional Rules for the Safety of Road Tunnels – Warvw / LTS - national tunnel standard).
The VDL-G was opened to traffic on September 1, 2024, and is currently maintained with a short-term maintenance contract of 20 months. This short duration was chosen due to the transition period from the project organization Approach Ring South to road manager Rijkswaterstaat. For the follow-up process, a reliable and expert party is again being sought to ensure the availability, safety, and maintenance of the VDL-G in collaboration with Rijkswaterstaat.
Information Meeting September 3, 2025
The tender for the maintenance contract VDL-G has been published on Tenderned . On Wednesday, September 3, 2025, Rijkswaterstaat will organize an information meeting for interested market parties. Registration for this tender is possible until December 12, 2025, and the final award is scheduled for the first quarter of 2026.