The rules on speed limits for cars are relatively simple.
- Default limits for cars are 50 km/h inside towns, 100 km/h outside, and 130 km/h on motorways
- Other limits may apply, of course, as indicated by signage
- 30 km/h zones are commonplace in Vienna, particularly on side streets
- Note that different limits apply to other vehicles, cars with trailers etc.
- Compare car hire options for your trip*
- See also:
Speed limits in Vienna
For the latest information on speed limits for cars, cars with trailers, mopeds, and other vehicles, see the Austrian government’s helpful English-language information page. But here’s a broad overview…
Across the whole of Austria, anywhere within the defined perimeter of a settlement has a default 50 km/h limit (just under 31 mph) for cars, unless otherwise indicated.
This perimeter is always marked by the “Ortstafel” city sign. It looks like this when you enter Vienna:
(To answer the obvious question: why does it say Wien and not Vienna?)
The sign looks like this when you leave the city:
(But why would you want to leave?)
The 50 km/h limit for cars is rarely explicitly indicated on road signs as you cross the city perimeter or drive around Vienna. As the default limit, you’re expected to know it.
What are the exceptions?
Limits that deviate from this standard are given using typical speed signs. This says you’re now entering a 30 km/h (just over 18 mph) limit:
(No prizes for guessing the German word for zone)
This tells you that the 30 km/h zone now ends, which means you’re back in the 50 km/h zone for cars in Vienna unless another limit applies:
(30 km/h areas are very common away from larger roads)
The 30 km/h restriction may also be painted in white on the road itself, as a helpful reminder.
A fair few areas in Vienna now have this lower speed limit, and it’s become standard on side streets.
This means you can find yourself going from 30 to 50 to 30 to 50 if you cross, for example, suburban areas of the city perpendicular to the main roads.
You also find higher limits now and then – typically 70 km/h (just over 43 mph) or 80 km/h (just under 50 mph) – on some of the big roads and autobahns (motorways) that cross or skirt the city.
Incidentally, if you do want to use your car on a motorway, then you need a digital or physical toll sticker.
Speed limits outside settlements
(Stuck in traffic)
For the record, the default speed limit for cars on roads outside settlements is 100 km/h, rising to 130 km/h on motorways.
Austria has discussed raising the motorway speed limit and also lowering it, with opinions divided along the usual lines (politics, car lobby, environmental lobby).
Again, remember those defaults only apply if no other limit is indicated.
For example, autobahns passing near or through cities tend to feature speed restrictions. And Alpine tunnels often involve speed restrictions even if within the motorway network.
You may also, of course, come across temporary speed limits to manage traffic flows in areas prone to traffic jams. Or weather-dependent limits, particularly in Austria’s rural and Alpine areas during the winter season.
Here’s perhaps the most important thing to remember: Austria does not have the German system, where stretches of autobahn allow cars, for example, to travel faster than the recommended speed of 130 km/h.
(I imagine our autobahn police might sit close to the border with Germany to provide written reminders of the difference between the countries in the form of speeding tickets.)
For more information on using a car in Vienna, check my overview page.