Brenner Autobahn Eastern Alps; this favourable location was therefore suitable for building the first motorway crossing among the Alpine main chains. Unlike other higher passes across the Alps, the Brenner Pass remains open all-year round and through the winter months. Construction of the motorway began in 1959 and the "Brenner Autobahn", including the Bridge of Europe (Europe's highest motorway bridge then), was partially open in 1963. The A13 begins in the south of Innsbruck from the east-west motorway A12 Inntal Autobahn ("Inn Valley Motorway"), which links Bregenz in western Austria to Kufstein near the border of Bavaria in Germany. At above sea,
Mendel Pass Mendel Pass The Mendel Pass ( or , , or ) is a 1,362 metre-high mountain pass between the provinces of Trentino and South Tyrol in Italy. The pass is accessed by the pass road, which begins in the town of Fondo in the Non Valley and ends southwest of the city of Bolzano, and the Mendel Funicular, which connects the Überetsch plateau with the pass. The pass road, SS 42, has a maximum grade of 12%, but is relatively straight. It is open year-round, but trailers are prohibited. The pass road was built between 1880 and 1885, and the