Vienna to Graz by car: A2 over the Wechsel or S6 via Semmering

Two routes from Vienna to Graz are almost the same length. Both follow the A2 Süd Autobahn to the Seebenstein junction (A2 km 56.5), south of Wiener Neustadt. There the A2 continues over the Wechsel to the eastern edge of Graz, while the S6 turns west through the Semmering tunnels to Bruck an der Mur, where the S35 follows the Mur valley to the A9 at Deutschfeistritz, north of Graz.

The two routes side by side

For scale only: about 180 km of either route is motorway or expressway (OpenStreetMap routing); at a constant 130 km/h that is roughly 1 hour 23 minutes (180 ÷ 130), before the 80 km/h tunnels, other lower limits, roadworks, city driving and traffic.

Why the apps can pick different roads here

With only a couple of kilometres between them, an app chooses on expected speed. Each weighs the Wechsel gradients, the single-lane S6 tunnels, roadworks and live traffic differently, so Google Maps, Apple Maps, Waze and TomTom can recommend different corridors for the same departure. ASFINAG, the motorway operator, uses one as the fallback for the other: when it closed one carriageway of the A2 at Laßnitzhöhe on each of two nights in September 2026 (Graz-bound 12–13 Sep, Vienna-bound 19–20 Sep), it diverted through traffic via the S6, S35 and A9.

To see which one your app chose, open the route overview before you start: the S6 option heads west past Gloggnitz and Mürzzuschlag, the A2 option south-east past Hartberg and Gleisdorf. The road numbers in the turn list confirm it.

Mapssy can compare this route with today's traffic: Google Maps and TomTom are live answers, Waze and (on the website) Apple Maps are labelled Mapssy estimates, and each card opens the route in that app. Why forecasts drift apart is explained in why navigation apps show different arrival times and how Mapssy works.

Roadworks in autumn 2026

From spring 2027 the single-lane S6 works move to the Steinhaus and Semmering tunnels, continuing until the end of 2029.

Vignette, but no section toll

The A2 is a motorway and the S6 and S35 are expressways, so either route needs a vignette, and none of the three is on ASFINAG's section-toll list. A Graz day trip is covered by the €9.60 digital 1-day vignette, and a weekend by the €12.80 10-day one (2026 prices, ASFINAG, checked 26 September 2026). Validity rules and where to buy are in our vignette guide.

Speed limits, the Wechsel and winter

The A2 crosses the Wechsel at roughly 730 m near Knolln, with steep gradients and tight curves. On the Vienna-bound side between km 73.05 and 67.09, section control has checked average speed since October 2015, and the limit follows the weather, so go by the overhead signs. The S6 avoids the Semmering pass road entirely: since October 2004 it has run beneath it through the 3.4 km (3,437 m) Semmering tunnel.

Styria's air-quality (IG-L) 100 km/h limits around Graz have ended: the pollution-dependent one on the A2 and A9 on 17 April 2025, the permanent one on the A2 at Feldkirchen on 25 May 2026 (Styrian gazette, LGBl. 26/2025 and 44/2026). The federal ministry's list had not caught up on 26 September 2026. The normal 130 km/h motorway limit applies unless the overhead signs show a lower one.

From 1 November to 15 April, Austria requires winter tyres whenever the road is wintry; see our winter driving guide.

Arriving at Graz Hauptbahnhof

The station stands on Europaplatz in the Lend district, west of the River Mur. Graz splits street parking into blue short-stay and green zones, and the square in front of the station has its own limit (graz.at, shown on 26 September 2026; the page gives no year):

• Europaplatz, in front of the station: every day 8:00–22:00, 1 hour at most.
• Other blue-zone streets: Monday–Friday 9:00–20:00 and Saturday 9:00–13:00, 3 hours at most, €1.30 per 30 minutes.
• Green zone: Monday–Friday 9:00–20:00, no time limit, €1 per half hour or €11 a day.
• Fines: €25 from the 13th minute unpaid or over the paid time.

For longer stays, the city's garage list shows the Bahnhof garage at Europaplatz 12 (368 spaces) at €2.50 an hour, €25 a day at most (listed on 26 September 2026, no price guarantee).

Park & Ride on the way in

Heading for the centre? Off the A2 at Graz-Ost, P+R Murpark in Liebenau (447 spaces) is directly on the way in, with its own stop on tram line 4. From the north, P+R Weinzödl on Wiener Straße (147 spaces) is on your way and listed by the city as free. At Murpark, Holding Graz sells a P+R combi ticket: €12.50 for 24 hours of parking plus buses and trams in zone 101 (price list valid from 1 July 2026, checked 26 September 2026).

The train alternative

On a sample weekday morning (Tuesday 29 September 2026) ÖBB's timetable shows a direct Railjet from Wien Hauptbahnhof to Graz Hauptbahnhof every hour, plus some extra trains, taking 2 hours 26 minutes to 2 hours 36 minutes. ÖBB says the 27 km Semmering base tunnel, Gloggnitz to Mürzzuschlag, should carry its first trains in 2030, bringing Vienna to Graz under two hours.

Checklist for the drive to Graz

• Buy a vignette valid for your travel day; the S6 and S35 need one as much as the A2.
• On the S6, take the S35 at Bruck an der Mur.
• Look up ASFINAG's roadworks information for the Wechsel resurfacing and the single-lane S6 tunnels.
• From 1 November, fit winter tyres if the Wechsel or the Semmering could be wintry.
• Plan the arrival: 1 hour at most on Europaplatz, or P+R Murpark or Weinzödl.
• Right before departure, run this route through Mapssy for today's live Google Maps and TomTom times, then check the route overview in the app you drive with to see whether it chose the A2 or the S6.