Copenhagen - German Transport Minister Wolfgang Tiefensee and his Danish colleague Carina Christensen were due Wednesday to sign an agreement in Copenhagen to build a bridge connecting Germany and Denmark across the Baltic.

The bridge for rail and car traffic between Roedby in Denmark and Puttgarden on the German island of Fehmarn will shorten the 4.5 hour trip between Hamburg and Copenhagen by an hour and also improve the rail connection between Berlin and Copenhagen.

The project forms part of a larger infrastructure project which the Danish parliament agreed Tuesday. Costs are estimated at 5.6 billion euros (8.1 billion dollars). The Danish government is to contribute 4.8 billion euros.