Breakdown in a Tunnel: What to Do?

The steps

1. Switch on hazard lights immediately. This warns following traffic as early as possible and helps avoid rear-end collisions.
2. Stop the vehicle: in an emergency bay, on the hard shoulder, or as far to the right as possible.
3. Switch off the engine.
4. Put on a hi-vis vest and check for traffic before getting out.
5. Raise the alarm via the emergency point. Emergency points are spaced every 150 metres in a tunnel. Use the emergency phone rather than your mobile: that way tunnel staff can locate your exact position.
6. If anyone is injured or there's a fire: call 112, see below.

Why the emergency point beats a mobile phone

From an emergency point, the control centre knows exactly where you are in the tunnel. On a mobile call, you have to describe the spot yourself, and there are hardly any landmarks inside a tunnel. Note where the emergency exits and emergency bays are as you enter. That's why safety equipment in tunnels is installed at regular intervals.

Preparing before you enter

• Switch on dipped headlights.
• Turn on the radio and listen for traffic announcements. Disruptions trigger broadcasts.
• Keep a large distance from the vehicle in front.
• Note the emergency exits and emergency phones as you pass them.

Tunnels in our regions

• Cologne: the A1 runs near Köln-Lövenich for about 1.5 kilometres in a noise-protection enclosure, see Breakdown on the A1 near Cologne. There are also tunnels in the city centre, for example the riverside tunnel, see Towing Service Cologne City Centre.
• Karlsruhe: since October 2022, the Karoline-Luise-Tunnel with two tubes runs beneath the Kriegsstraße, see Towing Service Karlsruhe.
• Baden-Baden: the Michaelstunnel on the B500 is about 2.5 kilometres long, with a single tube and two-way traffic, see Towing Service Baden-Baden.

If you're stuck in a traffic jam inside a tunnel

Automobile clubs recommend keeping a large distance in a tunnel and switching on hazard lights in a traffic jam. Listen to traffic radio and follow instructions from the radio and tunnel displays. During a longer stop, it's common to switch off the engine to reduce exhaust fumes. For a breakdown, the same rule still applies: a stranded vehicle in an emergency bay is better than one in a traffic lane, and if you can't move under your own power, the emergency point is your first point of contact, then us.

What to tell us

If the vehicle needs to be taken out of the tunnel, tell us the tunnel's name, your direction of travel, and whether you're in an emergency bay, at the edge, or in the carriageway. It also matters whether the police or the tunnel control centre already know. If a contracted company is called on the motorway, you may state your preference, but that's not a guarantee. General motorway rules are in Breaking down on the motorway.