Regional light rail

The federal government as the main payer is still making requests

According to LH Thomas Stelzer (right) and Regional Transport Councillor Günther Steinkellner, 20 of these tramtrains will be in operation from 2026.

(Bild: ÖVP/Antonio Bayer)

It is the week of decisive decisions, at least as far as the project partners in Upper Austria are concerned: on Monday, the state government approved the financing plan for the regional light rail system. On Thursday, the Linz municipal council will do the same. Why everyone is now waiting for the federal government - and vice versa.

State and city politicians like to refer to it as the "project of the century": from 2026, the first 20 sets of tramtrains are to run as regional light rail on the Linzer Lokalbahn line. The project, consisting of two S-Bahn lines, is set to transport 40,000 passengers per day - the S6 from Mühlkreisbahnhof to Linz Central Station and the S7 from there to the university.

On Monday, the provincial government approved the 35-page financing agreement, which will be ratified by the Linz municipal council on Thursday.

The federal government is to pay half
As reported, the state of Upper Austria is to contribute 42.5 percent and the city of Linz 7.5 percent of the costs. However, the federal government, which - as set out in a letter of intent - is to cover 50 percent of the costs, is still waiting for a definitive yes. "The documents have been with Minister Leonore Gewessler since January 10," according to the provincial parliament. The signals from Vienna have been "consistently positive", and the Provincial Governor Thomas Stelzer (ÖVP) and Transport Minister Günther Steinkellner (FPÖ) are hoping for the green light soon.

Federal government waiting for answers from Upper Austria
In response to an inquiry from "Krone", the Ministry of Climate Protection said that the contents of the agreement were already being finalized. "The proposal from the Ministry of Climate Protection was sent to the state of Upper Austria a few days ago. Now we are waiting for the answers. Details on the timetables and costs need to be clarified, for example." In general, cooperation is going very well and the timetable is "extremely ambitious". All sides are working to ensure that the financing agreement can be approved before the National Council's summer break.