In the Wörthersee area

Federal railroads invest in noise protection

In the meantime, ÖBB also operates quieter trains.(Bild: Uta Rojsek-Wiedergut)

For years, residents living near the Wörthersee route have been calling for more noise protection measures. ÖBB has launched studies and is responding to the demand. Even "quieter" trains are already running on the line. Nevertheless, noisy freight vehicles still thunder through the tourist communities.

Time and again, there are disputes between local residents and the Federal Railways along the Wörthersee route. Always for the same reason: the noisy trains. "In the municipal areas of Klagenfurt and Pörtschach, a number of areas have been defined on the basis of precise noise studies in which additional noise barriers will be built or existing barriers will be raised," explains Rosanna Zernatto-Peschel, press spokeswoman for ÖBB. These areas have been defined and contractually agreed in consultation with the affected municipalities and the state of Carinthia.

Work will continue until 2029
According to Bundesbahnen, a total of 20 sub-projects are already in the detailed planning stage. "The aim is to build new noise barriers over a total length of two kilometers and to raise existing noise barriers over a length of around 2.1 kilometers," Zernatto-Peschel told Krone.

The new construction projects will supplement the 30 kilometers of noise barriers already in place. The work is scheduled to start at the end of 2025 and be completed by 2029.

This measure corresponds to the implementation of the European requirements of the TSI Noise Regulation.

Rosanna Zernatto-Peschel, Sprecherin der ÖBB

Bild: ÖBB/Max Wegscheider

However, the Federal Railways are not only investing heavily in the expansion of noise protection. It has also invested heavily in retrofitting its vehicles in recent years. "All freight wagons in operation have been successively equipped with new quiet brake blocks from 2018 to 2023," explains Zernatto-Peschel. This measure has almost halved the decibel level of freight trains.

And yet there is still criticism from local residents that some trains are extremely loud. Zernatto-Peschel: "It's not just ÖBB trains that run on this section, but also other companies. And unfortunately, we don't know whether they have already implemented the measures prescribed by the EU."