A summer vacation in Germany means picture-perfect highways, picturesque castles, and… cars stuck in traffic jams stretching for miles. When the entire country simultaneously heads to the seaside or the mountains, German roads become a serious challenge. To save travelers’ nerves and ease congestion, the government imposes strict regulations: in July and August, large trucks are temporarily boycotted.
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What is Ferienreiseverordnung?
In Germany, there is a basic Sunday ban on heavy vehicles all year round, which is enshrined in § 30 StVO (of the country’s road regulations). However, in the summer, when schools close for the holidays and millions of families travel, the standard restrictions become insufficient.
To save the autobahns from traffic collapse, a special summer regulation—the Ferienreiseverordnung (Summer Travel Regulation)—is coming into effect. Essentially, this is a strict seasonal restriction (Lkw-Fahrverbot), which completely opens popular highways to passenger cars. Its official source can be found here: Text Ferienreiseeverordnung (PDF document).
The following categories of transport are required to observe the Saturday boycott:
- Heavy trucks. Vehicles with a permitted maximum mass of over 7.5 tons (7.5t).
- Transport with trailers. Any commercial vehicle with trailers (Lkw mit Anhänger). In this case, the total weight is irrelevant – even a small commercial van with a trailer is prohibited from entering.
Deadlines, facts and time window
The additional ban is strictly in effect for two months – July and August. The ban applies on Saturdays from 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Considering that trucks are already banned from driving on Sundays, the roads are closed to truckers for almost a day and a half.
For regular travelers, Saturday is becoming the ideal time to move. We discussed how this affects overall traffic in detail in the article “German Autobahn Traffic Congestion During School Holidays: An Analytical Forecast to 2026“.
Map of Restrictions: Where Trucks Are Off-limits?
Many people think the summer restrictions completely erase trucks from the entire country’s map. In fact, the Saturday boycott is selective. The full list of roads is updated annually, and only the busiest arteries leading to tourist destinations are included.
If you’re planning your route, keep in mind that key highways are affected:
- Top holiday destinations. Highways A1, A3, A7, A8, and A9 are closed at the most critical sections along almost their entire length. These are the main routes for tourists traveling to the Baltic Sea or south to the Alps.
- Regional nodes. The restrictions hit hard the bypasses around major metropolitan areas such as the Berlin Ring (A10) or the interchanges near Frankfurt and Munich.
- Federal highways. In addition to the motorways, the list also includes important sections of federal roads (Bundesstraßen) if they serve as key connecting hubs for holiday areas.
A complete, official and constantly updated list of all closed sections from the A1 to the A99 can be tracked directly from the original source – on the website Federal Office BALM in a special section Lkw-Fahrverbote.
ADVICE! Before leaving your hotel on Saturday morning, check not only your regular GPS, but also the German road portal autobahn.de. The alternative routes (Ausweichstrecken) established there are zones free of heavy trucks. This will definitely save you a couple of hours of your vacation.
Exceptions to the Rule: Who Doesn’t Apply the Law?
If every truck had stopped on Saturday, German supermarkets would have been in chaos. So the government has left a “green corridor” for those without whom the holidays would certainly be ruined.
Even during the peak summer holiday season, the Saturday Lkw-Fahrverbot does not apply to:
- Perishable products. Fresh milk, meat, fish, fruits and vegetables.
- Live cargo. If a truck is transporting, for example, cattle or live bees, the police will not stop it.
- Combined transport. Trucks that transport goods to ports or railway stations within a radius of up to 150 km for subsequent reloading.
- Emergency services. Humanitarian aid and transport used in emergency response.
If a company is transporting something extremely important but not on this list, it must apply for a special paid permit (Ausnahmegenehmigung) from the local traffic authority. However, regulatory authorities are extremely reluctant to issue it.
Fines and enforcement: the price of a Saturday trip
German Penalty Catalogue (Bußgeldkatalog) surprisingly lenient towards Saturday violators, especially when compared to the standard Sunday and holiday taboo (see the “Public holidays in Germany” page for current dates). Police regularly raid exits and rest areas, thoroughly checking drivers’ documents. Below is the official penalty for violating Ferienreiseverordnung (Ferienreiseverordnung) rules:
Fines on Saturdays
| Violation of regulations | Fine for the driver | Fine for the company owner |
| Driving on a prohibited highway on Saturday | 25€ | No fine |
| Driving on the highway for more than 15 minutes | 60€ | 150€ |
| I forgot my exclusion form at the office. | 10€ | No fine |
Fines on Sundays and public holidays
| Violation of regulations | Fine for the driver | Fine for the company owner |
| Driving on the motorway without permission (base rate) | 120€ | 570€ |
| Repeat or malicious violation | The amount is increased at the discretion of the police | The fine may be doubled |
INTERESTING FACT! The fines themselves are uniform throughout Germany, but each federal state sets its own fee for an official permit (Ausnahmegenehmigung) for driving on Saturdays. Depending on the region, the fee can range from €10 to €800!
Tips for drivers: how to outsmart everyone and use restrictions to your advantage
German regulations may seem overly strict, but for the average tourist, the summer Lkw-Fahrverbot (Low-Friday Pass) is a huge advantage. Using these rules wisely will make your road trip in Germany much more comfortable and safe.
Here are some golden rules for the perfect trip in July and August:
- Saturday is the best day for a forced march. Plan your longest intercity journeys for Saturday. From 7:00 AM to 8:00 PM, key highways will be as free of heavy traffic as possible. You’ll be able to maintain a comfortable speed.
- Check with summer vacation schedule. If summer school holidays are held simultaneously in federal states with large populations, trouble is coming. The more children leave school, the more parents take time off and hit the roads.
- Leave early. Remember that the Saturday traffic ban begins at 7 a.m. Start your drive so you’re on the highway just in time for the truckers to start parking en masse and clear the right-hand lanes.
- Keep the official software handy. Before leaving, be sure to check the interactive map on autobahn.de. If your GPS stubbornly drags you into a dead-end traffic jam, check out the alternative routes (Ausweichstrecken). They’re guaranteed to be free of trucks heavier than 7.5 t.
- Share tasks. Use Saturday exclusively for long-distance transit. Reserve Sunday for leisurely trips to castles, lakes, and small historic towns, when overall passenger car traffic is noticeably lighter.
In this publication we (the site team) De-Sf.Info) discussed restrictions on the movement of freight vehicles in Germany. We hope this article will help you better understand how the German transport system operates and plan your summer vacation, weekend, and holiday travel.. Don’t forget to share this post with your friends!
