Holiday traffic could snarl Vorarlberg routes

Traffic is expected to increase on the A14 and S16 when summer holidays end on Sunday in Vorarlberg and several other Austrian states, as well as in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, ORF reports.

ASFiNAG expects holidaymakers to return over several days because of poor weather across Central Europe. “We expect a staggered return journey because some people may leave earlier,” said ASFiNAG press spokesman Alexander Holzedl.

The Austrian motoring association ÖAMTC expects traffic heading south on Saturday morning. From Saturday afternoon, and especially on Sunday, the main direction of travel is expected to shift north.

Traffic could also slow around Dornbirn because the Dornbirn Autumn Fair runs until Sunday. Delays are possible at the Dornbirn-Mitte and Dornbirn-Süd junctions on the Rhine Valley motorway, both when entering and leaving the motorway.

ASFiNAG has prepared for the disruption. If queues extend onto the main carriageway, a trailer with an LED information sign will warn drivers of the end of the traffic jam. The motorway maintenance service will also be on heightened alert to secure the queues.

Drivers using the final holiday days for a short trip or returning home at the weekend should allow considerably more time. Delays are expected on the Fern Pass route, the B179, and the Brenner motorway, the A13, in Tyrol, as well as on the Tauern motorway, the A10, and the Pyhrn motorway, the A9. Tunnels and toll stations are expected to be particular bottlenecks.

The biggest expected traffic hotspot is the Karawanks Tunnel on the border with Slovenia, where ÖAMTC says waiting times could exceed one hour.

ASFiNAG provides more than 1,000 public webcams covering Austria’s motorways and expressways. Partner cameras in southern Bavaria, Slovenia, Croatia and Hungary, as well as cameras on Tyrol’s regional roads, can also be used to check planned routes before departure.