Immediate measures are required to bring more freight transport back onto climate-friendly rail
Vienna (OTS) – Gerhard Tauchner, chairman of the railway department in the vida union, appeals to the members of the National Council to finally take measures to stop the transfer of rail freight transport to cheaper roads. As Statistics Austria reports today, we recorded a significant decline of eleven percent in goods transported by rail in 2023. “The figures from Statistics Austria are no surprise to us. We have been warning for a long time that the tax incentives, especially for truck transit, will lead to a further shift of freight transport onto the road,” said Tauchner
This situation will get even worse in 2024, emphasizes Tauchner. Because with the new Austrian road costs directive, the Austrian federal government is leaving billions on the road and is thus promoting truck transit.
The vida union, together with organizations from the climate movement, drew attention to this development in January with an action in front of the WKÖ as part of the “Our Railways” campaign. The problem: The freight lobby for road freight transport forgets about the interests of workers, the transit-stricken population, the rail freight transport industry and ultimately also about the urgent measures to overcome the climate crisis. “As taxpayers, we all pay for the increase in road freight transport: safety on the roads, increased damage to the road infrastructure, and the health burden on residents must not be billed to society,” says Tauchner.
“We have been calling for loading support for a long time, as was recently decided by the Tyrolean state government. This funding can at least somewhat offset the distortion of competition in favor of the roads. In any case, the federal government cannot continue to gold the tires of foreign truck freight forwarders,” concludes Gerhard Tauchner from the vida union.
Questions & Contact:
Hansjörg Miethling
Mobil: +43 664 6145 733
E-Mail: hansjoerg.miethling@vida.at
www.vida.at
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