Austria is preparing its rail infrastructure to decarbonise the transport system and achieve climate neutrality a decade earlier than the EU. A sustainable transport system means transforming all modes of transport, and rail is at the heart of it, thanks to its well-known characteristics. The mobility strategy published by the Austrian government positions the transport system as an evolution of society and economic development, the key being the shift of traffic to sustainable modes. In the meantime, Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) is doing its utmost to develop and electrify the network, with investments of EUR 19 billion included for the period 2023-2028.
In 2021, the Austrian Federal Ministry for Climate Action, Environment, Energy, Mobility, Innovation and Technology (BMK) published the Mobility Master Plan 2030 which aims to significantly develop the economy and combat the effects of climate change with ambitions that go beyond the EU targets.
In the authorities’ plan, Austria would achieve climate neutrality in 2040 and use all renewable energy in 2030. Austria accounts for 2.2% of total EU greenhouse gas emissions, and its average carbon intensity is lower than the EU average and declining. In 2019, the transport sector was responsible for 30% of the country’s total emissions, while energy industries accounted for 13% of Austria’s total emissions. In the same year, the share of renewable energy resources was 33.6%.
If in 2019 Austria’s population was 8.9 million, by the beginning of 2022 it has increased by 127,000 people to 9.1 million, and by 2050 Eurostat shows that the population will increase to 9.34 million, which obviously means higher consumption, increasing mobility, and increasing carbon intensity, unless specific measures are introduced.
The transport system is the largest emitter of emissions and is responsible for 30% of total national emissions, with only 1% of emissions reduced between 2005 and 2019. The main reasons why transport emissions are so high are due to the increase in distances travelled and the fuel in transit traffic. An International Energy Agency (IEA) report for 2020 states that fuel tourism emissions account for 6.5% of Austria’s total energy-related emissions. This is due to the fact that in transit traffic, diesel prices are lower than in neighbouring countries, which leads drivers to refuel in Austria and consume the fuel in another country, which is exported in tankers. As a result, one of the government’s measures would include increasing transit charges for heavy-duty vehicles and promoting the shift of road traffic to rail.
Traffic shift and energy transition – by moving away from fossil fuels towards sustainable energy resources – are key to creating a sustainable transport system that contributes to achieving the goals, and these two factors play a crucial role in transport system transition.
In the 2030 Mobility Master Plan, rail transport has a prominent place due to its ability to reduce emissions and transport large volumes of freight and passengers using electricity from renewable resources. And this is not only true for reducing road traffic, but also for air traffic, which can be taken over by transport services on high-speed and night train connections (an important project for the national company ÖBB). As a result, the plan is to shift air traffic to rail transport, which would reduce emissions.
The authorities’ plan is that, through the measures and projects implemented, private road transport will decrease by 19%, from 61% in 2018 to 42% in 2040.
The target for sustainable transport in the passenger segment can be achieved by expanding accessible public transport networks, promoting active transport and walking, and introducing innovative solutions and state- of-the-art technologies that will lead the public to choose these modes over road transport – which in turn will be decarbonised by the introduction of electric vehicles.
In the case of rail freight, the strategy states that although the market share of this mode of transport is essential because the greater the volume, the more freight can be transported using the same amount of energy, it is nevertheless difficult to shift from road to rail or waterway over moderate distances, or in some market segments. In addition, about 80% of the transport volume in Austria is cross-border traffic which would limit the ability of rail to become more attractive, and “isolated” measures would allow a minor increase in rail’s share of the modal split.
Under these circumstances, a 40% share (initially set by the transport strategy for 2012) could only become a reality if measures are taken at European level by implementing measures to optimise the efficiency of international rail traffic and by introducing cost transparency for each mode of transport which will increase the efficiency of the logistics chain and focus on regionalisation. Increasing the share of rail freight to 40% representing 35 trillion tonne-kilometres could be achieved in cooperation with Europe, with Austria alone able to achieve an increase to 34%.
In 2022, Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) carried 210.7 million passengers, up 29% on the 2021 level, and long- distance transport saw a meteoric rise of 71% to 41.8 million passengers. There are two main reasons for this growth, one being tourism, which made a “significant contribution to the good passenger figures”, and another being the introduction of climate ticket in October 2021, “by the end of 2022, over 200,000 had been sold, far exceeding original expectations. In 2023 we expect the rail boom to continue,” said the CEO of ÖBB Andreas Matthä in April 2023 when presented company’s financial statement for 2022. According to him, the railways are expected to continue to boom this year.
As for rail freight, which has faced overlapping crises (the war in Ukraine, rising energy prices, falling production, but also material bottlenecks involving the entire logistics chain), ÖBB Rail Cargo Group (RCG) transported 88.4 million net tonne-kilometres in 2022, covering over 27 billion net tonne-kilometres. The operator transported 1.2 million tonnes of grain from Ukraine with more than 100 trains per month, “more than any other freight transport company in Europe”. Last year, RCG services ran 448,000 trains, with a daily average of 1,230 trains.
As with the EU strategy, Austria also points out that rail freight and inland waterway transport have the great advantage of energy efficiency, even as road transport becomes decarbonised. In this context, the strategy states that rail freight must play a key role in supporting overall transport growth and that attractive and easily planned services must be developed, including for international traffic.
Infrastructure investment
In any case, there can be no efficient services to ensure high flows of goods or passengers if the infrastructure does not allow it, in which case it must be adequate and extensive, with the national authorities’ plans for road and rail infrastructure, which are coordinated with each other, enabling the most efficient and possible options to be adopted in order to create a sustainable multimodal system, based in particular on electrification.
Almost every year, ÖBB invests more than EUR 3 billion in railway infrastructure, and last year the company invested EUR 3.9 billion, with the bulk of this being distributed to projects for the renovation and extension of infrastructure (including the southern and western lines), electrification of regional lines and modernisation and construction of stations, including the creation of park and ride facilities. In addition, as renewable energy is key to decarbonising the railway ÖBB is also focusing on power stations, wind power plants and photovoltaic for which last year it built 23 new photovoltaic plants and connected the world’s first wind power plant for traction power to the grid in Höflein (Lower Austria). It is worth noting that in Austria, Rail Cargo Group operates entirely on green traction current, and the electricity for and stations comes entirely from renewable resources. ÖBB-Infrastruktur is one of Europe’s greenest infrastructure managers as it runs 90% on hydropower as part of the rail power supply mix. Austria’s railway system will become climate neutral by 2040, but the federal government plans to reach this goal in 2035.
According to the company, in 2022 the railway infrastructure carried 260 million passengers and 100 million tonnes of freight, with 69 railway undertakings covering a total of 164 million train kilometres. The railway infrastructure is 5,000 km long and is one of the densest network with high performance, forming the core of the country’s public transport. According to the Eleventh Annual Market Monitoring Report of IRG-Rail, published in 2023, 72% (i.e. over 4,000 km) of the Austrian network is electrified and 510 km (9%) is equipped with ERTMS/ETCS. The intensity of use of the network is predominantly passenger traffic with 60% (in train-km per route-km per day) and 25% freight traffic.
According to the Mobility Strategy 2030, in order for the rail system to be fully decarbonised, measures are being addressed both in terms of infrastructure and rolling stock that will run on alternative propulsion technologies. In terms of infrastructure, 500 km of lines are expected to be electrified by 2030 when the network will be 85% electric, with the priority routes being those that are feasible for this work and most cost-effective. The routes of greatest importance are those on the TEN-T, those with dense connections for passenger traffic, those essential for freight and lines that are important for diversion. In addition to these lines, other routes could be included in the project, but only after considering the introduction of existing rolling stock operating technologies – hydrogen or battery electric – for which pilot projects have been initiated.
Even with this performance, the Austrian railway needs development, expansion and electrification to cope with future traffic as an increasing flow of freight and passengers has to be absorbed from road transport and, in addition, a growing population will mean a greater demand for transport, resulting in quite intense and high volume traffic.
In 2021, ÖBB announced that by 2026 it will invest EUR 25 billion, of which EUR 20.6 billion will be allocated to infrastructure expansion and renewable energy projects and EUR 3.4 billion to passenger rolling stock.
In October 2022, the Council of Ministers announced that ÖBB’s master plan for 2023-2028 involves investments of EUR 19 billion over the next five years, up from the plan for 2022-2027 (which had a value of over EUR 18 billion). The investments include two major priority projects involving the Brenner Base Tunnel with an allocation of EUR 2.1 billion, i.e. 11% of the value of the investment plan, and the creation of the new connection in the south involving the Koralmbahn and Semmering Base Tunnel with a total allocation of EUR 2.8 billion, representing 15% of the investment plan for the next five years. Apart from these projects, the largest amount of EUR 5.1 billion will be distributed to station conversion, terminal and new line construction projects including extension of existing lines, followed by reinvestment in Park&Ride and noise protection facilities with an allocation of EUR 4.4 billion and EUR 4 billion for maintenance works. EUR 2.5 billion will also be allocated for electrification and making routes more attractive, and EUR 2.1 billion for security and operational management systems.
By region
Broken down by region, the plan shows that the largest amount of investment, EUR 7.4 billion, will go to projects in the Eastern Region, where Vienna is an arterial hub of the network and capacity is expected to increase. Here expansion projects, line and station works, electrification and planning of new projects (most including double- tracking, electrification) will be implemented.
In terms of investment value allocated by region, second place is Tyrol with EUR 4 billion where Innsbruck is in the core area of the railway system, followed by Styria with EUR 2.8 billion where Graz is the railway hub, third place is Upper Austria with EUR 2.4 billion where the Linz railway hub is important, and in Carinthia for projects impacting the Klagenfurt hub, EUR 1.1 billion will be allocated. Also in Salzburg, projects will be allocated EUR 735 million and in Vorarlberg EUR 483 million. For the rail hub cities of the above regions, plans include the extension of local transport from their metropolitan areas. For Rheintal-Walgau, the central areas of Tyrol and Carinthia, as well as for Salzburg, further station works, electrification and the creation of public transport links are identified which will increase the attractiveness of services.
In the central part of Upper Austria, work involves quadrupling the Linz – Wels route, with work continuing on the Marchtrenk – Wels section to create the necessary capacity. The project will have an allocation of EUR 1.3 billion by 2030.
Other projects in the region involve the extension of the Pyhrn Line (an important north-south axis) by doubling the lines on certain sections which will allow trains to run between Linz and Selzthal at speeds of over 160 km/h, covering the route in one hour and 15 minutes, 15 minutes less than today.
Increasing the attractiveness of the S-Bahn routes, in particular the Summerauerbahn (Summerau Railway), is another measure that promotes rail transport by offering quality services. The Summerau Railway is a 61 km line between Linz and Summerau and is an important commuter and tourist route.
The Eastern Region metropolitan area includes Vienna, St. Pölten and Eisenstadt and quadruple track works are included. This includes, for example, the Meidling – Mödling line, which by 2034 will have a budget of EUR
1.26 billion, the Pottendorfer Line which foresees the quadrupling of the 50 km section between Wien Meidling and Wiener Neustadt with a budget for 2023 of EUR 635 million, the connection between Vienna airport and Bruck an der Leitha (with a budget of EUR 1.68 billion by 2032) and the modernisation of the Meidling – Hütteldorf line, for which EUR 345 million will be allocated by 2028, seen as a project that will improve the quality of the Austrian capital’s railway system.
In the metropolitan region of Graz, the projects are significant. One of these involves the extension of the Southern Line and comprises several projects involving the modernisation of 200 km, the construction of 170 km, with 80 km of tunnels and 150 new bridges. By 2030, the line will allow direct and fast journeys between Vienna and Klagenfurt (2 h 40 min) and from Graz to Klagenfurt (in just 45 min). The line will be 470 km long, crossing the Semmering and Koralpe mountains, and includes the two key projects Semmering Base Tunnel and Koralm Railway. The electrification of the Styrian Eastern Railway between Graz and Mogersdorf on the Hungarian border, which should be completed by 2028 and level crossings eliminated.
The 2023-2028 investment plan foresees EUR 1.8 billion for the modernisation of the regional vehicle fleet and the implementation of electrification projects in rural areas to increase the attractiveness of transport services.
Essential tunnels
The Koralmbahn is part of the Southern Line and when it becomes operational, it will strengthen connectivity on the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor. The line, which crosses the Koralpe mountain, will provide a direct link between Graz and Klagenfurt, connecting Styria and Carinthia quickly and efficiently. The project involves the construction of 130 km of line, of which 47 km in tunnels (of which 33 km form the Koralm Tunnel) and 100 bridges. The project includes 23 stations and stops of which 12 will be new. Construction started in 1999 in Styria and in 2001 in Carinthia, and June 2023 was a real success for the project, when the first train passed through the Koralm Tunnel for the first time after 15 years of work. On board the official train were the two governors of the regions of Carinthia and Styria, transport councillors of the two regions as well as Member of the Board for ÖBB-Infrastruktur AG Judith Engel and ÖBB project manager Klaus Schneider.
To build the 33 km tunnel with an internal diameter of 10 metres, cross-passages were constructed every 500 metres, 6 million m³ of material were excavated and 13,000 track slabs and 160,000 of concrete tunnel were installed.
According to the project, the section between Klagenfurt and St. Paul im Lavanttal will be put into operation this year, and the whole line is expected to become operational in 2025, when trains will run at 250 km/h, making a 45-minute journey between the cities of Graz and Klagenfurt.
“The Koralm Tunnel is an internationally renowned piece of engineering and the heart of one of the most important traffic axes of the future – not only for Styria, but for all of Austria. It closes a very important gap in the European infrastructure,” the Governor of Styria, Christopher Drexler said.
As of 20 July, ÖBB announced that the Klagenfurt – St. Paul im Lavanttal section in Carinthia is close to being opened at the end of this year and tests on the bridges have started, the longest in Carinthia being the new Drau Bridge in the Völkermarkt area with a length of 600 metres.
The tests are carried out with 6 ÖBB locomotives, each weighing 80 tonnes, which are at the same time crossing the bridges, resulting in the evaluation of the test information so that the section of line can be used safely. Apart from this bridge, tests continue on the Klopeiner Seebachbrücke, a new underpass and the Peratschitzen railway bridge. In October one of Austria’s highest railway bridges – the Jauntalbrücke – is expected to be completed. By 2025, ÖBB Rahmenplan says the project will benefit from investments of more than EUR 6 billion, including the realisation of the rail connection to Klagenfurt Airport.
The Semmering Base Tunnel is another important Southern Line project that will provide direct connectivity between Lower Austria and Styria, offering a journey time of less than two hours between Graz and Vienna.
The tunnel will be open to traffic from 2030 when it will connect the towns of Gloggnitz (Lower Austria) and Mürzzuschlag (Styria), thus reducing traffic on the current Semmering Line, which is used by about 180 trains daily and is one of Austria’s most congested routes. The tunnel is part of the Baltic-Adriatic Corridor and will also be used by freight trains, making it more attractive and resulting in higher capacity and shorter journey times.
The tunnel will be 27 km long and will be created through a 62 km tunnel system, with excavation completed in summer 2022 for 90% of the tunnel which is being built from five locations. More than 24 kilometres of the 27.3 kilometres of the twin-tube tunnel have already been dug. Total project costs have increased by EUR 390 million to EUR 3.9 billion and more than EUR 4 billion will be allocated to the project by 2030.
Essential for cross-border traffic between Austria and Italy and located on the Scandinavia-Mediterranean core network corridor is the Brenner Base Tunnel which will connect Innsbruck to Franzensfeste. The tunnel system between Innsbruck and Fortezza is 55 km long. The project is implemented by the company Brenner Basistunnel BBT SE and will be 64 km long between Fortezza and Tulfes/ Innsbruck, ending in Innsbruck, via the existing bypass tunnel with its end point in Tulfes.
In June 2023, on Austrian territory, the second mega drilling machine started its 8.4 km journey that will dig from the western part of the tunnel to the south, while in May the other TBM started excavation on the eastern section of the tunnel (Sill Gorge-Pfons section), towards Brenner Pass over a length of 8 km. It is worth mentioning that in March TBM Virginia completed excavation of 14 km (in four years) of the eastern part of the main tunnel, reaching Brenner Pass, completing work on section H61 Mules 2-3, the largest construction lot of the tunnel project. Earlier this year, BBT SE analysed the cost of the project which came to EUR 10.5 billion of which EUR 8.54 billion are construction costs, EUR 1 billion is the estimation for risk provision, and EUR 903 million is the estimation made on currency adjustment, representing the likely inflation applicable to future costs.
European funding is essential for the implementation of the Brenner Base Tunnel, for which Italy and Austria were initially supposed to receive 50% co-financing for planning and exploration and 40% for construction works. In February 2023, the EU pledged EUR 1.6 billion in co- financing, and in June 2023, through the Connecting Europe Facility 2021-2027, BBT SE obtained co-financing of EUR 700 million. It should be recalled here that through the same call for proposals, Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) received EUR 2 million for the preliminary design of the Rovereto Bypass, part of the Southern Access Route project located on the Fortezza – Verona section. This European co-financing provides funding for 50% of the works costs, up from 40% (initially agreed) to 10%. The remaining costs are shared equally between Italy and Austria. Under the ÖBB plan (2023-2028), the Brenner Base Tunnel project will be allocated EUR 4.97 billion by 2032.
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