"Christmas miracle"

“New” Westbahn line celebrates comeback on Sunday

"Christmas miracle" becomes reality - Three months after the flood of the century, traffic returns to the Tullnerfeld and through the Atzenbrugg tunnel.

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

Good news for all commuters who want to get home to their loved ones quickly before Christmas: After a three-month interruption due to the devastating flood of the century in Tullnerfeld, the Westbahn line will be running again from Sunday! Railjets will once again be traveling at speeds of up to 230 km/h and will also pass through the Atzenbrugg tunnel.

The announced "Christmas miracle" will become reality, ÖBB emphasized on Friday. Media representatives were able to see for themselves during a ride on the so-called Railchecker train.

"The main artery of Austrian rail transport"
Transport Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens) emphasized that it was "with great pleasure" that she was standing in Tullnerfeld "on the main artery of Austrian rail transport". The failure due to the floods was a "collapse". After weeks of difficult work, the "high-speed connection" is now available again, for which thanks are due above all to the employees of ÖBB.

Media representatives on the so-called Railchecker train on Friday.

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

Lower Austria's Deputy Provincial Minister of Transport Udo Landbauer (FPÖ) also spoke of a "more than pleasing day, especially for thousands of commuters". "We have seen how difficult it is to replace the train."

This is a very important message just before the intensive Christmas travel period.

Landeshauptfrau Johanna Mikl-Leitner (ÖVP)

"Important message just before Christmas"
Commuters in the state can breathe a sigh of relief "that the operation on the backbone of public transport in Lower Austria has been a success for the time being", said Member of Parliament Florian Krumböck, representing Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner (both ÖVP). "It's good that normal operations will resume on the western route from December 15. This is a very important message, especially shortly before the intensive Christmas travel season," Mikl-Leitner emphasized in a press release.

Krumböck (ÖVP), Landbauer (FPÖ), Matthä and Gewessler (Greens) at a press conference on the "Reopening of the western line".

(Bild: APA/HELMUT FOHRINGER)

The Tullnerfeld region was hit hard on a Friday the 13th, recalled ÖBB boss Andreas Matthä. This meant not only ÖBB, but also thousands of households and businesses that had lost their belongings in the flood. This Friday, the 13th, is a "lucky day" on which the reopening of the western line can be announced. Matthä also addressed a "thank you to the passengers" for their patience. He also referred to the employees who made the "Christmas miracle" and the return to maximum speed a reality.

According to information from Friday, the costs for the repairs to the infrastructure after the flood will be in the forecast range of around 100 million euros. An exact calculation will be made once all the work has been completed in summer 2025.

Four-week closure next year
The "Christmas miracle" was also made possible by the fact that spare parts warehouses throughout Austria had been emptied, ÖBB emphasized. Because not all the necessary parts were available, there were also some provisional solutions - in compliance with safety standards. Therefore - as already announced - the "new" western line will have to be closed again for just under four weeks next year.

Extension by just under 30 minutes
From May 12 to June 5, long-distance trains will be rerouted through the Vienna Woods via the "old" connection, as in previous weeks, which means an increase in travel time of almost 30 minutes.

Tunnel badly affected
According to ÖBB CEO Matthä, the repair work following the flood of the century not only involved pumping out countless cubic meters of water and removing mud, but also replacing 16 kilometers of power supply cables and 1.4 kilometers of high-voltage lines (10 KV line). The Atzenbrugg tunnel was particularly badly affected, which was also due to dam breaches on the Perschling.

Timetable change comes into force
The first trains to travel through the Tullnerfeld again on Sunday are the Westbahn WB 998 at 0.08 a.m. from Vienna Westbahnhof and the ÖBB Railjet RJ 820 at 0.28 a.m. from Vienna Hauptbahnhof. The timetable change also comes into effect nine days before Christmas Eve. Through services to Vienna Airport in Schwechat will also be resumed.