Dresden

Dresden
Information
Country:	Germany
State:	Saxony
Population:	505,563 (30 June 2007)
Licence plate:	DD
Major roads:	A4, A13, A14, A17
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Dresden [1] is a city in the eastern part of Germany. In Dresden a World Heritage Site is located, the so called Dresden Elbe Valley

General remarks

Due to the position of the gas station around Dresden, passing it from North to South, or the opposite, could be really difficult.

Hitching Out

North towards Berlin, Cottbus(A13)

Take tram line 13 (Strassenbahn) until Friedensstrasse. At the crossing (you'll recognize a McDonald's sign), turn right into the Hansastrasse, pass the McDonald's and walk underneath the railway bridge. <map lat='51.07538050661171' lng='13.74114990234375' zoom='13' view='0' float='right' /> After 1 km (and passing some small private gardens) you will find a Shell petrol station. In front of the petrol station entry there's enough space to stop cars that go to the highway. The Hansastrasse is an access to the A4, in both directions, but most cars are going north from here. Maybe 200m after the Shell station is another gas station and also space where people can stop if you just stand near the road. Most locals go there, as it is cheaper. However, you might miss both some company cars (since companies sometimes have special payment cards for Shell) but also the snobbish type of people that Shell customers tend to be ;)

There are also often hitchhikers right behind the railway station Dresden-Neustadt. Be aware that this is a common meeting point for users of http://www.mitfahrgelegenheit.de so there might be a higher possibility that people want money for a lift.

West towards Chemnitz, Leipzig

Go to the tram station "Cossebauder Straße" and walk up the big street ("Meißner Landstraße"). You can either ask the people at the gas station or stand next to the road with a sign.

Another good spot is directly at the ramp to the motorway A4. There is a place to stop, and the cars can see you while waiting at the traffic light. From the city, reach it by bus 94 direction "Cossebaude" or "Niederwartha" and get off at the stop "Zschonergrundstraße", or by local train RB/RE to "Elsterwerda-Biela" or "Hoyerswerda" and get off at "Dresden-Kemnitz". For train or bus you can use the ticket for travelling within one fare zone, so it's quite cheap.

South towards Prague (A17)

Just to start this direction... I haven't tried the spots myself but lived in the area for a long time. Get to Busstop "Südhöhe" (Lines 72, 76 & 360). There is an Aral gas station, but on the opposite side of the road. It's the last gas station before the highway though. You could also try to stop people at various Bus stops near traffic lights on the way ("Bergstraße") but the roads acclivity is very high, its difficult for drivers to stop (or at least to get back on the road).

There might be better spots in Dresden Prohlis, has anyone information on this?

Passing through Dresden (North->South or South-North)

If you are coming from the north (e.g. Berlin, A13 or A4 from east.) and you want to go south (e.g. Prague), you might have a problem considering where to get dropped (obviously, only if your driver is not going your way). The problem is that the highway splits just before the gas station. So if you get dropped at the gas station (Aral company), you will get only people going the other way (West).

Then, you have then three options (in both ways, you will have similar problem and solution)

• you might want to get dropped way before Dresden, approximately 20-50 kilometers before getting to the city (exact information needed)
• you find a nice driver willing to do a loop for you. Meaning that he must go out from the highway after that Aral gas station, make a U-turn, take the highway in the other direction, and drop you on the opposite gas station, then he can enter Dresden or make another U-turn if he is heading west.
• if the weather is nice... you can be droped at the exit after the gas station. Then you can walk back, following the highway (from outside, please!), to get back to the right gas station (approx. 3.5km).

This article is based on text from the German language Anarchopedia which is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License.