35 years after the end:

This is how many “Schwarztafler” are still on the road today

Even 35 years after most of us have changed our license plates, quite a few are still chugging around with black plates.

(Bild: Markovsky Johannes/KRONEN ZEITUNG)

Seeing a black plate on the roads of the Republic 35 years after the switch to white license plates is almost a rarity. And yet, even after three and a half decades, 126,186 Austrians are still driving "black". The "Krone" knows where most of the "black dachshunds" are on the road.

35 years ago, exactly on January 1, 1990, the first Austrians issued white license plates for their cars and other vehicles. At the beginning of the 1990s, nobody would have thought that three and a half decades after the official end of the black predecessors with white lettering, there would still be more than 160,000 "Schwarztafler" on the road.

A common sight from 1947 to 1990 - vehicles with black license plates.

(Bild: Egger Horst)

If nothing was changed to the registration, Taferl still applies today
But it is not illegal: the important thing is that nothing has been changed in the registration since January 1, 1990. Wiener Städtische Versicherung has now surveyed how many black license plates are still active. Unsurprisingly, the trend is downwards. While there were still more than 220,000 in 2014 and more than 165,000 in 2019, 126,186 cars, trucks, motorcycles and agricultural machinery still bear the black plates today.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com)

Lower Austria in the lead when it comes to the "calling card of the nation"
Most of them in rural areas, by the way. In Lower Austria (see chart) 36,665, followed by Styria (24,269) and Upper Austria (24,254). At the bottom are Vorarlberg with 4160 and Salzburg with 5355. Surprisingly, there are still 7593 black license plates even in the metropolis of Vienna. The "calling card of the nation", as artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser called the license plates, is thus still emblazoned on 1.7 percent of all vehicles registered in this country.

The introduction of the white plates was primarily for safety reasons, as the stronger reflective power reduces the risk of accidents.

Doris Wendler, Vorstandsdirektorin der Wiener Städtischen

Districts vary considerably
In terms of districts, Vienna is in the lead - because 23 districts are added together here. It is followed by south-eastern Styria (5268), Mistelbach and Amstetten (both Lower Austria) with 3573 and 3231 Taferln respectively. In Spittal an der Drau (Carinthia), 2607 vehicles are still doing their rounds, in Braunau (Upper Austria) it is 2305, in the Salzburg area 1969, in Bregenz 1866 and in the city of Innsbruck 1750.

The likelihood of spotting an old Taferl is highest on old agricultural machinery.

(Bild: Rojsek-Wiedergut Uta)

In Steyr (Upper Austria), on the other hand, the cult taferl are probably nearing their end with only 173 left, as well as in the Vienna area (175) and Schwechat (188). It remains to be seen how long it will take until the last "Schwarztafler" is on Austria's roads.