Germany-Austria-Switzerland autobahn?

[agentsteel53]

I was reading some article elsewhere and one of the comments was as follows:

Austrians have been ticketing Germans on that 800m stretch of Autobahn between Germany and Switzerland which is technically in Austria for not having a valid Vignette for years now.

I tried to find this, but could not.  it looks like the Germany-Austria-Switzerland triple point would be in the middle of the Bodensee - and I found no direct autobahn that traverses the three countries for such a short distance.

any help? 

[J N Winkler]

I tried to find this, but could not.  it looks like the Germany-Austria-Switzerland triple point would be in the middle of the Bodensee - and I found no direct autobahn that traverses the three countries for such a short distance.

I think the article is talking only about the part of the itinerary under discussion (essentially St. Gallen-Bregenz-Wangen) that is a motorway, i.e. the A14 Bregenz bypass.  Google Maps doesn't show any enclaves, exclaves, or other boundary irregularities in this area, and I would consider it reliable on this point since it does show others like Büsingen or Baarle-Hertog.

[agentsteel53]

so what you are saying is, people would take the A14 from Germany, hope to get off at the first Bregenz exit, and get caught by the police?

[J N Winkler]

Essentially, yes.  I think you get free travel on Austrian Autobahnen until you pass the first opportunity to purchase a vignette (many former border crossings have been converted into sales points for vignettes, IIRC--this happened to the A4 crossing near Nickelsdorf after Hungary joined Schengen in 2007), and then you become fair game.

[english si]

The E43 runs from the German border to Exit 9 (Austria using km-based exit numbers, with the A14's zero point being that German border), before heading along the Bregenz Stadttunnel to the Bodensee coast and then heading on local roads to the Swiss border. I imagine that the (far more useful for the Germanic navigator) destination signage would run that route too.

[agentsteel53]

(many former border crossings have been converted into sales points for vignettes, IIRC--this happened to the A4 crossing near Nickelsdorf after Hungary joined Schengen in 2007)

correct.  the A9 out of Slovenia has the purchase opportunity right there at the border.

[Chris]

Austria requires a valid vignette right from the border on Autobahns. There are no exceptions anymore. It used to be allowed to drive on A12 to Kufstein-Süd without a vignette (many valleys are accessible through that exit), but they canceled that exception a while ago.