TheAustrian autobahns arecontrolled-access highways inAustria. They are officially calledBundesstraßen A (Bundesautobahnen) under the authority of theFederal Government according to the Austrian Federal Road Act (Bundesstraßengesetz),[1] not to be confused with the formerBundesstraßen highways maintained by theAustrian states since 2002.
Ideas to build up alimited-access road network withgrade separated interchanges had been developed already in the 1920s, including a "Nibelungen" highway along theDonau (Danube) river fromPassau toWien (Vienna) and further on towardsBudapest. Those plans however had never been carried out due to the lasting economic crisis that hit the country after the dissolution ofAustria-Hungary in 1918, exacerbated by theGreat Depression.
The first autobahn on Austrian territory was theWest Autobahn fromSalzburg toVienna. Building started immediately after the AustrianAnschluss in 1938 the annexation of Austria on order ofAdolf Hitler as extension of the GermanReichsautobahn-Strecke 26 fromMünchen (Munich) (the present-dayBundesautobahn 8). However, only 16.8 km (10.4 mi) including the branch-off of the plannedTauern Autobahn had been finished on 13 September 1941.[2] Construction works discontinued the next year due toWorld War II. After the war delaying resistance by theSoviet occupation forces as well as claims raised byWest Germany to the formerReichsautobahn assets obstructed the resumption until 1954.
Construction started in theUS-occupied zone ofSalzburg andUpper Austria, partly relying on the pre-war planning, and were extended after the country gained full sovereignty by the 1955Austrian State Treaty. The first section of the West Autobahn up toMondsee was opened in 1958, by 1967 the route between Salzburg and Vienna was completed. From 1959 onwards theSüd Autobahn was built to reach the southern state capitals ofGraz andKlagenfurt from Vienna. The construction of the Tauern Autobahn was not resumed until 1969. TheInn Valley Autobahn in the western state ofTyrol was built from 1968 onwards, up to today it is not directly connected to the main Austrian autobahn network, as via motorway drivers have to use the German autobahnsBAB 8 and93 along theDeutsches Eck link.
Austria currently has 18 autobahns, since 1982 built and maintained by the self-financedASFiNAG stock company in Vienna, which is wholly owned by the Republic of Austria and earns revenue from road user charges and tolls. Each route bears a number as well as an official name with local reference, which, however, is not displayed on road signs. Unusually for European countries,interchanges (between motorways calledKnoten, "knots") are numbered by distance in kilometres starting from where the route begins. That arrangement is also used in theCzech Republic,Slovakia,Hungary,Spain and mostCanadian provinces (and in mostAmerican states, albeit in miles). The current Austrian Autobahn network has a total length of 1,720 km (1,070 mi).
The system is going to be expanded; one autobahn is currently under construction, and one more is planned. The transit traffic across themain chain of the Alps, especially by trucks, has led to a considerable environmental load to the fragile Alpine ecosystem. Several action groups urge the transfer of freight transport from road to rail. In 1991, Austria signed theAlpine Convention on the protection of the natural environment.
| Number | Name | Route | Length (km) | Length (mi) | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 A 1 | West Autobahn | ViennaAuhof –Sankt Pölten –Linz –Salzburg –Walserberg border crossing (GermanBundesautobahn 8) | 292 | 181 | Open |
 A 2 | Süd Autobahn | ViennaInzersdorf interchange (A23) –Wiener Neustadt –Graz –Klagenfurt –Thörl-Maglern border crossing (ItalianAutostrada 23) | 377 | 234 | Open |
 A 3 | Südost Autobahn | Guntramsdorf interchange (A2) –Eisenstadt interchange (S31) | 38 | 24 | open;Eisenstadt –Klingenbach border crossing (HungarianM85 motorway): planned |
 A 4 | Ost Autobahn | ViennaErdberg –Schwechat –Nickelsdorf border crossing (HungarianM1 motorway) | 66 | 41 | Open |
 A 5 | Nord Autobahn | Eibesbrunn interchange (S1) –Wolkersdorf –Poysdorf | 24 | 15 | Open;Poysdorf –Drasenhofen border crossing (CzechR52 expressway): planned |
 A 6 | Nordost Autobahn | Bruckneudorf interchange –Kittsee border crossing (SlovakianD4 motorway) | 22 | 14 | Open |
 A 7 | Mühlkreis Autobahn | Linz interchange (A1) –Unterweitersdorf (connectionMühlviertler Schnellstraße (S10) to CzechD3 motorway under construction) | 29 | 18 | Open |
 A 8 | Innkreis Autobahn | Voralpenkreuz interchange (A1, A9) –Wels –Suben border crossing (GermanBundesautobahn 3) | 76 | 47 | Open |
 A 9 | Pyhrn Autobahn | Voralpenkreuz interchange (A1, A8) –Graz –Spielfeld border crossing (SlovenianA1 motorway) | 230 | 140 | Open; some two-way tunnels |
 A 10 | Tauern Autobahn | Salzburg interchange (A1) –Villach interchange (A2, A11) | 193 | 120 | Open |
 A 11 | Karawanken Autobahn | Villach interchange (A2, A10) –Karawanken Tunnel border crossing (SlovenianA2 motorway) | 21 | 13 | Open; one two-way tunnel |
 A 12 | Inn Valley Autobahn | Kufstein border crossing (GermanBundesautobahn 93) –Innsbruck –Zams (Arlberg Schnellstraße (S16)) | 153 | 95 | Open |
 A 13 | Brenner Autobahn | Innsbruck interchange (A12) –Brenner Pass border crossing (ItalianAutostrada 22) | 35 | 22 | Open |
 A 14 | Rheintal/Walgau Autobahn | Hörbranz border crossing (GermanBundesautobahn 96) –Bregenz –Feldkirch –Bludenz-Montafon (Arlberg Schnellstraße (S16)) | 61 | 38 | Open |
 A 21 | Wiener Außenring Autobahn | Steinhäusl interchange (A1) –Alland –Vösendorf interchange (A2, S1) | 38 | 24 | Open |
 A 22 | Donauufer Autobahn | ViennaKaisermühlen interchange (A23) –Korneuburg –Stockerau interchange (S3, S5) | 34 | 21 | Open;Kaisermühlen –Kaiserebersdorf interchange (A4): proposed |
 A 23 | Südosttangente Wien | ViennaAltmannsdorf – ViennaHirschstetten | 18 | 11 | Open;Hirschstetten –Raasdorf interchange (S1): planned |
 A 24 | Verbindungsspange Rothneusiedl | ViennaHanssonkurve interchange (A23) – ViennaRothneusiedl interchange (S1) | 0 | 0 | Plans rejected |
 A 25 | Welser Autobahn | Haid interchange (A1)–Wels interchange (A8) | 20 | 12 | Open |
 A 26 | Linzer Autobahn | Hummelhof interchange (A7) –Urfahr interchange (A7) | 0 | 0 | Planned |
| Total length | 1,720 | 1,070 | |||
UnlikeGerman autobahns, on Austrian autobahns a generalspeed limit of 130 km/h (81 mph) is set, although as of August 25, 2018, the ÖVP-FPÖ coalition government had been going on a trial for a possible speed limit increase to 140 km/h (87 mph) on the Autobahn 1 freeway. The trial ended in 2020 with no changes to speed limit. They may only be used by powered vehicles that are designed to achieve at least 60 km/h (37 mph). While on the motorway voluntary stops, U-turns and backward driving are prohibited.
Schnellstraßen (officiallyBundesstraßen S) are federallimited-access roads very similar toAutobahnen; the chief difference is that they are more cheaply built with fewer tunnels, mostly just following the given topography. Depending on the road extension, they are either signposted asAutobahn orAutostraße according to Austrian traffic regulations. The speed limit onSchnellstraßen is 100 km/h, however on some it is 130 km/h indicated by a sign. The currentSchnellstraßen system has a total length of 466 km (290 mi).
As they fit better with the mountainous topography of Austria,Schnellstraßen often serve as an autobahn substitute. For example, the main link between the Austria's westernmost state ofVorarlberg and adjacentTyrol is entirely provided by theS16 Arlberg Schnellstraße, including theArlberg Road Tunnel completed in 1979.
Since 1997, the use of allAutobahnen andSchnellstraßen requires the purchase of avignette (toll sticker) for passenger cars up to 3.5tonnes or aGO-Box [de] (electronic toll system) for trucks and buses. The toll fee (Maut) has to be paid to legally access the Austrian Autobahns at any time except the Autobahns listed below. On routes which are more costly to maintain, mostlyAlpine routes with tunnels—sections of thePyhrn Autobahn, theTauern Autobahn (Tauern Tunnel) and theKarawanken Autobahn (Karawanken Tunnel), as well as theBrenner Autobahn—a toll is collected at time of use viatoll plazas and therefore drivers do not need to have a vignette to use these Autobahn sections.
Vignettes (coll.Pickerl) are available in varying lengths of validity (10 days, two months, or a year). As of 2016[update], a vignette valid for a year costs €85.70 for cars and €34.10 for motorcycles.[3] To prove to have paid this fee, the toll stickers have to be put onto the inside of the front windscreen. Once removed, they no longer are valid, so each car on Austrian Autobahns needs its own toll sticker. From 2018, digital vignettes are an alternative to toll stickers. Digital vignette is purchased on the internet and linked to the vehicle's registration plate.
Since 2004 trucks must carry theGO-Box, a little white box which counts the length of the Autobahn used by way of electrical control points, queried by overheadDSRC microwave radio transceivers at different locations. Overhead 3-D infrared laser scanners are used to detect and photograph trucks travelling without it.
A fine of €110 must be paid if a vehicle is on the motorway without a GO-Box or a vignette, or a fine of €240 if a vignette is not affixed onto the windscreen or in one of the approved places or the vehicle is on the motorway with a vignette that has expired or been tampered with. If the driver refuses to pay the fine, then the fine will increase to between €300 and €3,000.