A12 border crossing
August 2002 - Just a family holiday. So don't expect anything spectacular. But this border crossing has a nice deserted atmosphere. It certainly is worth recording for posterity. It may soon be gone.
Here the Dutch and German borders meet >

In Dutch it is called "Grensovergang Bergh", but in German it has another name >

In 1993 the European Union decided to abolish the internal borders. Now the whole place is relatively deserted. But in the past cars and busses were supposed to go this way >

And trucks the other way (more import administration) >

Then they needed a big parking lot for all the waiting trucks >

Now the whole place is in decay. The lamps have broken from the lampposts >

And rust and peeling paint are everywhere >

Every lamppost had it's own number >

No one needs to obey this STOP sign anymore >

And this barrier stays open all the time >

This is the actual geographic border. Indicated by a lonely milestone. I couldn't find any more in the bushes. There was a small stream that blocked my way >

Number 687 A. The numbering increases in the southern direction >

So 687 B must be on the other side of the highway. Somewhere in this direction >

Here you're looking into Holland >

And here into Germany. No maximum speed here on the highway >

Don't take the wrong direction please, go back >

I peeked through the dusty curtains. Some entity is still surviving in the old administrative building >

Some primitive bureaucratic lifeform (there are some vacancies) >

That can survive on the barest essentials >

 But the bank in the distance has closed. With the introduction of the Euro in 2002 no one needs to change money anymore >

I wonder what will happen to this site in the future.

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