Public transport

Railroad celebrates centenary at the siding

The last train from Oberwart left in 2011 under protest.(Bild: Initiative Zukunft auf Schiene)

The Pinkafeld - Friedberg railroad line was opened 100 years ago. An initiative is now calling for its revival.

Since August 1, 2011, passenger transport on the Oberwart - Friedberg line towards Vienna has been history. There have been many initiatives to revive the line. ÖBB's decision has not changed: too little passenger potential, too high costs and strong competition from buses would make reactivation unthinkable.

When the train also rolled to Hungary
Things were different 100 years ago, as a look at the history books shows. In 1925, the district of Oberwart was connected to the Austrian rail network by the Altpinkafeld - Friedberg rail link. At that time, there was also the Pinkatalbahn, which was discontinued in 1953 and ran from Steinamanger (Hungary) via Rechnitz - Großpetersdorf - Oberwart - to Pinkafeld.

Tunnel construction in Friedberg, Styria. The final work was carried out in 1924 and the line went into operation in 1925.(Bild: Initiative Zukunft auf Schiene)

A century after the opening of the rail link, there is no longer any possibility of boarding a train in the Oberwart district. The "Future on Rail" initiative is taking the upcoming election year as an opportunity to demand from politicians what has already been promised several times: the reconnection of the Oberwart district to the Austrian and international rail network.

Initiative Zukunft auf Schiene wants to present a plan
"With this clear statement, we want to bring a breath of fresh air to transport policy in the south of the province. We have the vision that in the 100th year of the rail link's existence, the course will be set for the future to revitalize the railroad," says spokeswoman Jutta Spitzmüller. A plan will be presented in the coming weeks.

Little chance of reviving the line
Despite all efforts, the revival of the line is considered unlikely. For Provincial Councillor Heinrich Dorner (SPÖ), this is also a failure on the part of Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens), "with whom there were talks on this topic." Another problem would be the routing, which would not allow a fast connection to Vienna, Dorner passes the ball to ÖBB.