Broadband Expansion; Application for the Installation or Modification of a Telecommunications Line on Public Road Right-of-Way

In principle, anyone is permitted to use public roads and their components within the scope of their designation for traffic (public use). Public use primarily encompasses traffic in the narrow sense, that is, in the sense of movement, changing location, and transportation. Any use beyond public use constitutes special use.

Authorization under the Telecommunications Act (TKG) is required for the use of traffic routes by telecommunications lines.

You are a telecommunications company with a right of use as defined in § 125 of the Telecommunications Act (TKG) and would like to use a public road to lay or modify lines.

The application for approval of the relocation must be submitted to the relevant road authority. The districts or independent cities are responsible for district roads; the municipalities are responsible for municipal roads; and the state construction authorities are responsible for federal and state roads outside of town centers. For a road improvement project within a city or municipal area, a general approval may be granted. Guidance documents for this can be found under the “Forms” section.

Within town centers, the responsibilities for granting approval for federal, state, and county roads are regulated as follows:

• Federal highways: Municipalities with more than 80,000 residents are responsible within town centers. In the town centers of other municipalities, the municipalities are responsible for sidewalks and parking lots, while the state public works departments are responsible for the roadways.
• State and county roads: Within built-up areas, municipalities with more than 25,000 residents are responsible for state and county roads. In the sections of state and county roads passing through the remaining municipalities, the municipalities are responsible for sidewalks and parking spaces; the state public works departments are responsible for the roadways of state roads; and the counties are responsible for the roadways of county roads. For bike paths in town thoroughfares, it depends on whether they exist or are planned on the adjacent open stretches of road. If this is the case, the State Public Works Offices are responsible for bike paths on state highways, and the counties are responsible for bike paths on county roads. In all other cases, the municipalities are responsible for bike paths.