Truck Driving Bans in Austria: Times, Rules and Calendar
In Austria, trucks over 7.5 t face a nationwide night ban (22:00–05:00) and a weekend and public-holiday ban. On top of that come seasonal transit bans on the Tyrol and Salzburg corridors, plus tunnel, parking and emission-class restrictions. This overview covers the permanent rules, the main exemptions and the current 2026 driving-ban calendar — with the specific dates for the A 12, A 13, A 4 and the key federal roads.
Last updated: June 2026. The calendar dates are taken from the official ordinances (BGBl. II 77/2026, 338/2025 and 121/2026). The signage on the road and the official calendar always take precedence.
Table of contents
- The permanent bans: night, weekend, public holiday
- 2026 driving-ban calendar: transit dates
- Tunnel, sectoral and emission-class bans
- Parking bans and restricted zones
- Toll-diversion and regional bans
- Make bans visible while you plan
- FAQ
1 | The permanent bans: night, weekend, public holiday
These three bans apply all year, nationwide and independent of any calendar. The legal basis is § 42 of the Austrian Road Traffic Act (StVO).
Exemptions from the night ban: road-service and military vehicles, plus certified low-noise trucks carrying the yellow “L” plate (manufacturer certificate, re-checked every two years).
Exemptions from the weekend and public-holiday ban (extract): combined transport within a 65 km radius of designated rail terminals; carriage of livestock for slaughter, postal items and periodicals; beverage supply in excursion areas; urgent repairs, towing and breakdown assistance, refuse collection; certain fresh foods (with a consignment note or loading list). The full list is in § 42 StVO.
2 | 2026 driving-ban calendar: transit dates
On top of the permanent bans, seasonal ordinances close individual transit axes on specific days — above all on the Brenner and Tauern routes. The most common dispatch mistake: the Brenner public-holiday bans are destination-based. The same day can block traffic heading to Italy while allowing traffic heading to Germany — miss that and you lose hours at a checkpoint.
A 12 Inntal & A 13 Brenner — public-holiday transit bans 2026
Applies to trucks, trucks with trailers and articulated vehicles over 7.5 t GVW:
Summer Saturday bans 2026
On summer Saturdays, 08:00–15:00 each time, in both directions:
For the A 4, source and destination traffic to and from the districts of Neusiedl am See, Eisenstadt (city and surroundings), Rust, Mattersburg, Bruck an der Leitha, Gänserndorf and Korneuburg is exempt. The federal-road bans apply only outside built-up areas.
Luegbrücke: extra Saturday closures on A 12, A 13 and A 14
Because of the Luegbrücke renovation, additional Saturday and single-day closures apply in 2026 for trucks over 7.5 t on the A 12, A 13 and A 14 toward the Brenner (BGBl. II 338/2025): on Saturdays from January to mid-March, from late May to early June and from late June to late September, each 07:00–15:00, and on individual holiday dates 07:00–22:00. The exact days and the current single-lane status are published by ASFINAG; the full list of dates is in the WKO overview.
Salzburg: spring closure on the A 10 Tauern Autobahn 2026
On the A 10 (northbound carriageway toward Salzburg, between the Villach and Salzburg junctions), trucks over 7.5 t are banned from Monday 18 May 2026, 11:00, until Saturday 23 May 2026, 04:00 (BGBl. II 121/2026). Source and destination traffic for certain regions is exempt.
3 | Tunnel, sectoral and emission-class bans
- Arlberg Tunnel: ban on dangerous-goods transport requiring placards (ADR).
- A 12 Inntal: sectoral ban on certain goods between Langkampfen (km 6.35) and Zirl (km 90.00), plus a permanent night and emission-class ban.
- Over-height/over-width loads need advance authorisation.
4 | Parking bans and restricted zones
- City centres (Vienna districts 1–9, Salzburg old town, central Innsbruck): no parking for trucks over 7.5 t outside marked areas.
- Tourist and nature-protection zones (e.g. Hohe Tauern National Park, Alpine resorts): heavy-vehicle parking only at official facilities.
- Motorway hard shoulders, exits and tunnel portals: parking prohibited to keep traffic flowing.
5 | Toll-diversion and regional bans
Since 2004, nearly every province closes through-roads to trucks over 3.5 t to prevent toll-diversion traffic (with exemptions for local source and destination traffic; signposted in each case). Vienna and parts of Lower Austria and Styria also enforce emission-class bans on Euro-1 and Euro-2 trucks. If you regularly run the Austrian transit axes, keep an eye on the Austrian truck toll in parallel.
6 | Make bans visible while you plan — with IMPARGO
A TMS does not take the bans off your hands: IMPARGO does not automatically plan around driving bans, nor does it block them by itself. What it does is surface the conflict early — so you resolve it at your desk instead of at a checkpoint.
- Plan in the Planner Module: calculate route, ETA and per-country toll costs for the tour — including the Brenner and Tauern axes.
- Set a time blocker (manually): the dispatcher adds a time blocker in the Dispatch Module for the ban window, e.g. Saturday 08:00–15:00 on the A 4.
- See the conflict on the timeline: if a tour collides with the blocker, it becomes visible on the dispatch timeline. IMPARGO enforces nothing — the dispatcher re-times the tour manually and coordinates with the customer.
- Transparent down to the driver: the revised plan flows to the driver via the DriverApp; status and documents stay digital.
The benefit is not “automatic compliance” but overview and reaction time. Tour costs can be checked live in the cost calculation alongside.
7 | FAQ
From what weight does the ban apply?
The night ban from 7.5 t GVW; the weekend and public-holiday ban from 3.5 t for trucks with a trailer, and from 7.5 t for solo trucks and articulated vehicles.
Is there a Saturday ban?
Yes, twice over: the nationwide weekend ban from Saturday 15:00 — plus extra summer Saturday bans (08:00–15:00) on the A 4 and several Tyrolean federal roads.
When does the night ban apply?
Daily from 22:00 to 05:00, nationwide.
What applies on public holidays?
The public-holiday ban from 00:00 to 22:00 — plus the destination-based Brenner transit bans on individual dates (see the 2026 calendar).
