Attention: Driving bans active in North and South Tyrol
In order to reduce truck congestion and evasive traffic on public holidays and during the summer season, driving bans will be applied on both sides of the Brenner Pass. The Tyrolean environmental zone will also remain in force.
There are various reasons why the authorities announce driving bans for certain routes and times. Environmental zones are of course among these, but they are not the only traffic restrictions in force. With the start of the summer season, driving bans are added annually in North and South Tyrol. High traffic volumes are also to be expected because of the public holidays in Germany and Austria on Ascension Day, Whitsun and Corpus Christi.
For these reasons, the government commission for the province of Bolzano has already issued a ban on truck traffic for 26 May and 6 and 16 June. This is to prevent traffic jams between Sterzing/Vipiteno and the Brenner Pass. The restrictions are also intended to ensure road safety on the route, which is heavily frequented by holidaymakers. On the other side of the Brenner, too, driving bans will apply to goods traffic on the holidays mentioned.
However, not only lorries are affected by the measure. In order to keep the load on the low-ranking road network under control, driving bans will apply to all motor vehicles on several routes in the districts of Innsbruck-Stadt, Innsbruck-Land, Kufstein and Reutte. After two summer seasons marked by the Corona pandemic, transit traffic in Tyrol is again increasing noticeably at weekends, explains Günther Platter, Governor of Tyrol. Accordingly, it is important to counteract the massive evasive traffic through towns and villages with driving bans and traffic lights, Platter continues. Based on a thorough examination and evaluation of current developments, the driving bans have been extended again for the summer of 2022. As emphasised by Transport Provincial Councillor Ingrid Felipe, drivers will no longer have the option of avoiding congestion on the main traffic routes via local through-roads. "Drivers will not be allowed to drive on certain roads unless they can be proven to be part of the traffic to, from or in the vicinity of their destination. The driving bans will be in force from the Whitsun weekend until the end of September.
However, travellers passing through and holidaymakers should not only keep the seasonal driving bans in mind, but also continue to pay attention to the strict rules of the environmental zones active in Tyrol. You can find out what these are in detail and which sticker you need to drive in Austria in the Green-Zones app.