12 were interested

Only one company applied for the bike rental service

The "red" operating company earns money with the advertising displays at the 40 bike rental stations(Bild: Horst Einöder/Flashpictures)

The Linz city bike rental service, operated by a company that is demonstrably owned by the SPÖ, is a topic of discussion at the municipal council meeting on Thursday. SP city leader Dietmar Prammer remains calm in the face of questions from Neos municipal councillor Stefan Burgstaller.

As reported, Neos municipal councillor Stefan Burgstaller has taken a closer look at the Linz city bike rental system and has come across inconsistencies which have raised questions that he would like to have answered by SP city manager Dietmar Prammer at tomorrow's municipal council meeting. For example, about the awarding and awarding of contracts, or about transparency.

SP city leader Dietmar Prammer already commented yesterday in an interview with the "Krone" newspaper and once again emphasized the legality of the procedure. According to him, the invitation to tender was issued Europe-wide in accordance with the provisions of the applicable Federal Procurement Act and was publicly available on several channels.

12 requested documents, only one applied
Although twelve companies requested the participation documents, in the end only Gutenberg-Werbering GmbH submitted an application. Intensive negotiations followed before the concession agreement was unanimously approved by the municipal council on 23 January 2020. Prammer justifies the establishment of the operating company following this decision with a financial security mechanism: if the municipal council had been against the contract, the parent company would not have had to bear unnecessary financial expenses.

"Could hardly be more far-reaching"
The SP mayor also emphasizes the advantages for the city: "A tender could hardly be more far-reaching and public than on a Europe-wide level. The City of Linz has no influence over who ultimately submits a bid or not. I am glad that this concession contract could be negotiated." To better illustrate this, Prammer refers to the city of Salzburg: "There, the public sector has to dig really deep into its pockets. It costs the city of Mozart around 1.5 million. Linz, on the other hand, has not paid anything so far, but simply provides the public space. This solution benefits cyclists, especially tourists, as well as the city's finances."