Vienna’s first district seeks trial night-driving ban
Thursday 5th November 2026 on 00:15 in
Austria
Vienna’s first district has asked the city to examine a trial night-driving ban for non-residents, as protests over noisy cars have failed to stop drivers from cruising through the area. ORF reported that legal hurdles remain high.
Residents say drivers, mostly young men in often-tuned luxury cars, continue to circle the streets in the evenings and at night, particularly at weekends, revving their engines. Residents have staged protests since the summer, and Vienna police have stepped up operations, but the measures have not had the desired effect. The problem has reportedly worsened.
“The drivers are still doing their rounds,” said Marisol Eggenburg-Piber, who initiated the residents’ protests. She told ORF’s “Wien heute” that their behaviour had also become more aggressive.
The residents’ initiative has long called for a night-driving ban for people who do not live in the district. The district administration has now submitted a request to the responsible municipal department, MA 46, to assess a trial. Eggenburg-Piber said she hoped the issue was now being taken seriously enough for authorities to find a system that could be enforced.
Matthias Nagler, a traffic expert at the Austrian motoring club ÖAMTC, said a ban would require a clear need and could be imposed only if less restrictive measures were not available. He also warned that enforcement would become more difficult as the area covered grew, and said automated monitoring would be needed for a large zone.
However, Nagler said there was no legal basis for such automated monitoring or for “noise cameras” proposed by the district, which would respond to vehicles exceeding a certain sound level. He said making unnecessary noise with cars on public roads was unacceptable, but cautioned that expectations for bans and monitoring measures might be too high.
Former district head Ursula Stenzel of the Austrian People’s Party called for a night-driving ban in 2006 and 2013. The municipal department rejected the proposal at the time. The latest request is now with the city administration.