Vienna bus operators demand rules for unlicensed E-Oldtimers

Vienna’s bus operators are calling for stricter rules for electric cars styled as vintage vehicles, which can currently be driven without a licence because they are legally classified as carriages. ORF reported that almost 260 were operating in central Vienna last weekend, four times as many as three years ago.

With a design speed of up to 10 kilometres per hour, the vehicles are legally treated as carriages rather than motor vehicles. This exempts them from many requirements that apply to other motorised road users.

Drivers can be as young as 16 and do not need a driving licence. They are also allowed to have up to 0.8 parts per thousand alcohol in their blood. Ludwig Richard, head of Vienna’s bus operators, criticised the lack of licence, registration plates and insurance requirements.

Richard said a 16-year-old could legally drink two beers and then drive along the Ringstraße with 12 unrestrained tourists and a phone held to their ear. “That is madness when you compare it with the strict requirements for car drivers and especially bus drivers,” he said.

The Vienna association of bus operators wants E-Oldtimers to be subject to the same rules as other motor vehicles. These would include compulsory insurance and registration plates, a B driving licence for adult drivers, or a D licence when more than eight passengers are carried. Operators would also need a commercial concession and proof of professional competence.

The vehicles can currently be registered as a non-regulated commercial activity. The proposed changes would require amendments to Austria’s Motor Vehicles Act and Trade Regulation Act.

The district administration of Vienna’s Innere Stadt has also called for stricter rules for E-Oldtimers and bicycle taxis, known as “Faxis”, which it said regularly cause traffic obstructions and congestion in the city centre.