RRoad Clarity
A road curving past a dark timber alpine farmhouse across green pasture in Austria, with a jagged snow-streaked mountain range on the horizon.

Austria

Drives on the right · EUR · Emergency 112
LAST VERIFIED 2026-09-13

Driving in Austria

Austria is the country where visitors most often pay twice without expecting to. A vignette covers motorways and expressways, and buying one feels like the end of the matter. It isn't. Several Alpine crossings — the Brenner, the Tauern and the Pyhrn among them — levy a separate toll on top, collected at their own barriers. If your route goes over or under the Alps rather than around them, budget for both. The vignette is now sold plate-linked and digital alongside the traditional windscreen sticker, and 2026 is the last year the physical version is offered. Buy from ASFINAG or its official retail network: the operator warns about phishing messages and lookalike shops, which is a genuine problem here rather than boilerplate caution. Winter rules are condition-based inside a window. From 1 November to 15 April you need winter tyres, or chains where they are required, whenever the road is snowy, icy or slushy. A clear dry day inside that window doesn't trigger it; a snowfall on 2 November does. Headlights are mandatory day and night, year-round. Speed enforcement includes Section Control average-speed stretches on some motorways. Town parking is usually a Kurzparkzone needing a ticket or a disc. The alcohol limit is 0.5‰, dropping to 0.1 for novice drivers.

Speed limits

Urban
50 km/h
Rural / outside built-up areas
100 km/h
Motorway
130 km/h

Alcohol limits

General limit
0.5‰
Novice drivers
0.1‰

Mandatory equipment

  • •Warning triangle
  • •Hi-vis vest
  • •First aid kit

Winter tires & snow chains

From 1 November to 15 April, winter tires (or chains fitted when required) are mandatory whenever roads are snowy, icy, or covered in slush — it's condition-based within that window, not a blanket date rule.

Tolls

System
Vignette

A vignette (physical sticker or digital, plate-linked) is required for cars up to 3.5 t on motorways and expressways; several Alpine sections (e.g. Brenner, Tauern, Pyhrn) charge an additional separate toll on top of the vignette.

Full vignette & tolls guide →

More things to know before you drive

Seatbelts
Mandatory front and rear for all occupants.
Mobile phone use
Hands-free only; holding a phone while driving is prohibited.
Child seats
Children under 14 and shorter than 150 cm must use an approved child restraint suited to their age, height, and weight.
Headlights
Dipped headlights mandatory at all times, day and night, year-round.
Low-emission & restricted zones
No nationwide low-emission zone network; some Alpine routes and tunnels have separate driving bans for older or high-emission trucks, and Vienna has limited local restrictions.
Right of way & roundabouts
Priority to the right at unmarked intersections; roundabouts give way to traffic already circulating.
Parking
Many cities use short-term "Kurzparkzone" paid zones — display a purchased ticket or parking disc showing arrival time.
Speed cameras
Fixed and mobile cameras are common, including average-speed ("Section Control") systems on some motorway stretches.

Good to know

Special Alpine toll sections (e.g. Brenner, Tauern) are charged separately from the general vignette — budget for both if your route crosses them.