The Fleuthe Bridge

The Kohlenweg from Hattingen via Bochum to the village of Gahlen was laid out in 1766 as one of the first paved roads in the central Ruhr area. It was used to transport the hard coal mined on the Ruhr to the north. The sandstone arch bridge, seven meters long and six meters wide, was built in 1853 over the Fleuthe, a right-hand tributary of the Emscher, as part of the coal route.

The border-forming stream between Gelsenkirchen and Herne has dried up due to the relocation of the Emscher to the north (construction of the Rhine-Herne Canal from 1910), so that the bridge has now lost its technical purpose. It is still preserved, restored from 1992 to 1994 and listed as a monument in both cities. It is accessible to tourists through a hiking car park and a bus stop named after it (line 342 from Wanne-Eickel main station or GE, Forsthaus) on the B 226. It is also part of the “Art Street becomes Street of Art” project, which was used on Gahlensche Strasse in the 2010 Capital of Culture year.

The Kohlenweg and the bridge are part of the Industrial Heritage Route.

Is a little hidden, but worth seeing and informative thanks to an information board.This bridge is on the industrial route between Gelsenkirchen and Herne-Crange

Historic bridge construction with information board. If you are passing by it is worth an informative stop ...