Austria 100 Schilling Silver Coin 1978 Arlberg Tunnel
Commemorative issue: Opening of Arlberg Tunnel
Obverse: Value and three rows of shields within circle (Coat of arms of Austria and nine shields of the federal provinces of Austria), date below circle divided by small hammer and sickle emblem.
Reverse: One side has to show the mountain range in a stylized form with the road tunnel, symbolically represented by two reaching hands. Underneath the coat of arms of interconnected through the tunnel federal states of Tyrol and Vorarlberg are displayed. Above the mountains the sun shines. Between them is a banner with the text "DAT PRAEMIA DIGNA LABORUM". The inscription reads "ARLBERG ROAD TUNNEL BUILT IN 1974-1978".
Composition: Silver (.640).
Weight: 23.93 g.
Diameter: 36 mm.
Shape: Round.
Arlberg Road Tunnel
The Arlberg Road Tunnel (German: Arlberg Straßentunnel), with a length of 13,976 metres is Austria's longest road tunnel. It carries the S16 Arlbergschnellstraße (German for "Arlberg Highway") under the Arlberg massif from Tyrol to Vorarlberg.
The tunnel is 1228 m (4,030 feet) above sea level with the road above the tunnel being 1640 m (5,400 feet) elevation.
It was built between July 1974 and December 1978 and its costs amounted to 4 billion Austrian schillings (~300 million €). The tunnel is designed for 1800 vehicles per hour and equipped with 4 ventilation centres (one shaft with a height of 736 metres is the deepest in Europe), 12 vents, 43 cameras for traffic monitoring and 16 niches. In 1998 the tunnel was used by 2.6 million vehicles, where 18% are accounting for freight transport. The Arlberg Tunnel is a Toll Road: Euro 9,00 (February 2013). Tolls for both directions are collected at the eastern end of the tunnel.