The autobahn is an expressway in Germany and German-speaking countries.
The first stretch of autobahn was built in 1913 near southwestern Berlin. Today, this 12-mile stretch serves as a racetrack. In the 1920s and 1930s, Germany built the first "automobile-only" roads from Dusseldorf to Opladen and from Cologne to Bonn.
As of 2009, the autobahn network in Germany is approximately 7,500 miles (12,070 kilometers). Germany, Switzerland and Austria are all part of the autobahn road system.
While the German government does not establish strict maximum speeds for travel on the autobahn, European travelers generally set their speeds depending on road and traffic conditions. In heavily traveled areas, near cities and in bad weather, speed limits are posted.
Although Adolf Hitler is credited with creating the autobahn road system, he merely saw its propaganda benefits as well as its employment and military benefits before the beginning of WWII.
