New state subsidy

Companies cash in on the shift to rail

Rail freight transport is to be boosted (symbolic image).

(Bild: APA/dpa/Sven Hoppe)

Truck transit by road is booming, while rail, which is desirable for environmental reasons, is lagging behind. A "start-up grant" of 200 euros per wagon from the state of Tyrol is now intended to accelerate the shift.

Transit by road is at a record level, and rail obviously needs help from the public sector: the province of Tyrol is now launching a "start-up grant" for companies: If more goods are transported by rail than before, the province of Tyrol will subsidize this with 200 euros per individual wagon. This means that the "additional volume" compared to the previous year will be subsidized.

I invite all businesses located in Tyrol to use this start-up funding to expand rail transport or to try it out for the first time.

Wirtschafts-Landesrat Mario Gerber

Bild: HMC Hammann

The start or end point must be within Tyrol, applications for funding for a maximum total of 15,000 euros have been possible since April 1 and until October 31, 2024, and the transport must also take place during this period.

Significant energy savings as a further argument
"In this way, we are creating an incentive to relocate and supporting Tyrolean companies to transport even more goods by rail," said Economic Affairs Minister Mario Gerber. René Zumtobel, Head of Transport, pointed out that the shift to rail on the Brenner corridor would bring energy savings of 72 percent (comparison between freight trains and diesel trucks). Every rail kilometer is valuable.

Slight increase in comparison
In 2022, 4.27 million tons of goods were handled at Tyrolean railroad stations (excluding the RoMo); more recent figures are not yet available. The railroad stations in Tyrol with the highest freight throughput were Hall, Wörgl, Jenbach, Zirl, Kirchbichl, Innsbruck (main and west station) and Sillian. This corresponds to an increase of +0.22 million tons compared to 2021. The long-term goal is to significantly increase the total volume of goods transported by rail regionally as well.