Protesters block Tirol's Fernpass, demanding tunnel halt and no toll

On Saturday, the Fernpass road (B 179) in Tirol was fully closed from 9:45 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. after two demonstrations organized by the citizen initiative “Lebensraum Gurgltal Außerfern / Mieminger Plateau”. Around 950‑1,000 participants gathered at sites in Reutte and Imst, marching along the 34‑kilometre stretch and chanting slogans such as “We don’t want your tunnel, we don’t want your toll”.

Green Party leaders Gebi Mair and Margit Dablander used the protest to condemn the state’s “Fernpass package”, calling the planned Scheiteltunnel a “Judas reward” and questioning the 7.5‑tonne weight limit and the proposed toll. They urged the Tirol government to put the tunnel project on ice and seek a safer, permanent traffic solution. The demonstration highlighted local opposition to increased traffic, noise, and emissions linked to the proposed infrastructure.