Börse Express – rail control: New Westbahn services to Innsbruck are possible

ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG withdraws the application for economic balance check

Vienna / Innsbruck (OTS) – ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG has withdrawn its application to check the economic balance of its traffic.
This action ends before the Railway Control Commission and, from a regulatory point of view, new transfers of WESTbahn Management GmbH from Vienna to Innsbruck with a schedule change could be carried out in December 2022.

WESTbahn Management GmbH notified the Railway Control Committee of its intention to operate trains between Vienna and Innsbruck as of the 2023 schedule period. ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG then applied to the Railway Control Committee to examine whether these new trains would jeopardize the economic balance of traffic .

An intent to operate a new commercial passenger rail passenger service must be reported to the regulatory authority.
The basis of this Section 65 (5) EisbG, which implements Section 38 (4) of Directive 2012/34/EU. In particular, rail carriers operating public transport services on the same route (here ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG) can apply for an economic balance check in this case.
As a result, the Railway Control Commission, as the regulatory authority, is examining whether significant negative effects of new traffic on existing traffic are expected under the public service contract.

About Rail Control GmbH:

Rail Control GmbH was founded in 1999. On the one hand, it is the regulatory authority for rail transport, and on the other hand, the Arbitration Board for Passenger and Passenger Rights (abbreviated: apf) in Austria.

As the regulatory authority, Schienen-Control controls competition and free access to affordable rail. In this way, it enables and supports fair competition for a better and more successful railway. www.bahnencontrol.gv.at