Higher toll revenues than in the previous year, the increase in car traffic above pre-Corona levels. These are two striking figures that the state highway company Asfinag published in a preview of the annual results.
Toll and vignette revenues are expected to amount to 2.5 billion euros, which is 60 million euros more than in 2022. Heavy traffic accounts for the lion’s share of revenue at 1.69 billion euros – with heavy traffic having a total weight of more than 3.5 tons decreased by 2.8 percent.
The traffic of vehicles up to 3.5 tons has increased – by almost four percent. Truck traffic continued to increase slightly on the Brenner route, while there was a decline on the other main routes, according to Asfinag. On the Pyhrn route the decline was 2.8 percent in the first eleven months.
Since the federal government has suspended the adjustment of toll and vignette fees to general inflation for 2024, Asfinag will lose 200 million euros in sales next year, according to Asfinag CFO Josef Fiala. For comparison: this year the expected total turnover is 2.6 billion euros.
A source of income for Asfinag, albeit a minor one, is traffic fines for speeding. The high-speed drivers brought 108.7 million euros into Asfinag’s coffers, compared to 105.1 million a year earlier. 80 percent of traffic fines go to Asfinag, the rest to the police, who are responsible for the radar stations.
Investments – primarily the maintenance of motorways and expressways – amount to 1.24 billion euros this year, and the annual profit is expected to be 815 million euros (2022: 851 million). The costs for Asfinag increased by almost nine percent in 2023, while the increase in revenue was five percent. The debt burden is 10.4 billion euros – with an average interest rate of 1.9 percent. The equity capital is nine billion euros. “We didn’t need a single bond financing this year,” said Fiala. Another bond is to be issued in October of next year.
The charging stations are to be massively expanded next year, with Asfinag acting as the provider of the power lines. Asfinag is investing around 300 million euros for electrification by 2030.
