MAINZ, Germany – Police in Austria pulled over a driver on the country’s high-speed A1 autobahn Sunday – for traveling too slowly.
An 89-year old woman was stopped after officers saw her driving a red mobility scooter down the shoulder of the freeway on her way home from a local village festival.
“The lady was not intoxicated,” police spokesman Johann Baumschlager told NBC News. “But she was quite angry because she did not understand why she could not drive on a highway when she is normally allowed to use sidewalks with her motorized device,” he said.
The elderly driver had missed a turn on her way Sunday afternoon and mistakenly drove the wrong direction up a service ramp to the highway - even though her vehicle has a maximum speed of six miles per hour.
After seeing cars coming in the opposite direction, she turned around and drove in the emergency lane in the correct direction for two miles.
Police caught up with the unidentified driver and escorted her to her home in the town of St. Poelten.
In Austria, most autobahns have a speed limit of 81 mph. They can only be used by vehicles than can achieve 37 mph or higher.
