Greenpeace calls for the reactivation of discontinued railway lines

2023-09-19 03:13:31

Austria was one of only three countries in the EU that have invested more in the expansion of rail transport than in road infrastructure over the past three decades. This emerges from a German study carried out on behalf of Greenpeace. Nevertheless, the environmental organization primarily finds critical words for Austria and calls for the reactivation of routes and train stations that have been closed since 1995 because they were unprofitable.

While the road network across Europe grew by over 30,000 kilometers between 1995 and 2018, the rail network shrank by more than 15,000 kilometers in the same period, Greenpeace has calculated.

On behalf of Greenpeace, the Wuppertal Institute and the T3 Transportation Think Tank examined how the public transport infrastructure in the EU-27, Great Britain, Norway and Switzerland has changed over the last three decades. The report shows that the countries examined have invested almost two thirds more in the expansion and renovation of roads since 1995 (1.5 trillion euros) than in the expansion of rail transport (931 billion euros).

In the years 2018 to 2021, this gap closed somewhat: the 30 European countries invested a third more in the expansion of road transport than in the expansion of rail. Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the United Kingdom have invested more in rail transport than in road transport in these four years.

Not good enough, says Greenpeace: In Austria, 655 kilometers of railways and 230 stations have been closed in almost three decades.

“Now the state governments are challenged: especially in Lower Austria, which is at the bottom, disused regional railway lines must be reactivated,” says Marc Dengler from Greenpeace Austria. According to the environmental organization, it does not matter whether the routes are profitable.

The ÖBB does not want to accept this criticism: In the years 2023 to 2028, ÖBB-Infrastructure AG will invest around 1.8 billion euros in modernizing and making the regional railways more attractive, according to a statement. There is a legal obligation to use the tax resources made available sparingly and economically. Therefore, not all routes might be maintained and modernized. If no corresponding demand is expected, ÖBB will not be allowed to invest in accordance with the economic criteria prescribed by the Ministry of Transport.

The ÖBB argues that reopening discontinued regional train connections would cause enormous costs and bring little benefit. There will be new regional connections where it makes sense in terms of transport policy and in the interests of taxpayers, for example on the new Koralmbahn or, as is already the case today, on the new western route from Tullnerfeld.

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