Razor alarm: 243 km/h on the Vienna city highway-police strike!

Razor alarm: 243 km/h on the Vienna city highway-police strike!

Wiener Stadtautobahn, Österreich - The Viennese police put two razors on the night of May 19, 2025 and temporarily confiscated its vehicles. The most dramatic incident occurred at 0:15 a.m. on the Vienna city highway, where a 20-year-old Austrian was caught at a speed of 243 km/h at allowed 130 km/h. He showed a striking driving behavior by accelerating and slowing down several times. The car was confiscated and his test guide license was taken away. In addition, an advertisement was filed because such a speed crossing endangers not only the driver, but also uninvolved road users, as the police emphasized.

A second incident was registered at 11:15 p.m. on the Erdberger Lände in the Landstrasse district. A 24-year-old Austrian was caught when he was traveling at 162 km/h instead of the permitted 70 km/h. In this case too, the police rigoros proceeded: the vehicle was confiscated and an advertisement follows.

stricter measures against racers

These incidents fall into a time when Austria has introduced harder punishments for racers since March 1, 2024. Speed ​​crossing of over 80 km/h in the local area and 90 km/h outside of town can now lead to confiscation and auction of the vehicle. With repeated offenses, such as illegal car races, restrictions are possible at 60 km/h above the limit in urban areas and 70 km/h. Transport Minister Leonore Gewessler emphasized that these measures are necessary to withdraw their "murder weapon".

As early as 2021, the fines and the duration of driver's license trains were increased for speeders. These tightening are part of a comprehensive plan to improve traffic safety, since non -adapted speeds are responsible for about a quarter of all fatal accidents. At excessive speed, the risk of a fatal accident increases significantly, which underlines the urgency of these measures.

a rethink required

According to an investigation, a third of fatal accidents in Austria were due to driving too fast in 2020. Despite these alarming numbers, the ÖAMTC traffic club expresses concerns about the effectiveness of the new regulations. ÖAMTC lawyer Matthias Wolf points out that there are no sufficient studies that show that tougher punishments actually have a deterrent effect, while the ministry, according to the ministry

A comparison with other European countries shows that the limit values ​​for driver's license trains in Austria are higher than in Germany or Switzerland. It is therefore argued that the existing measures may not be sufficient and it is necessary to further exacerbate existing considerations for traffic safety in order to achieve an effective reduction in speed overrun.