Thayatalbahn

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Thayatalbahn
Route number (ÖBB) : 176 01
Route length: 41.5 km
Gauge : 1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Maximum slope : 21  ‰
Top speed: 60 km / h
Legend
Route - straight ahead
 Railway line Vienna – Gmünd from Gmünd
Station, station
 -2.5 Schwarzenau in the Waldviertel 501  m above sea level A.
   
 0.0 former Willings junction to Vienna
   
 1.1 Windigsteig
   
 1.3 Connecting railway ( Awanst ) warehouse
   
 2.6 Kottschallings
Station, station
 9.5 Waidhofen an der Thaya 508  m above sea level A.
   
 12.1 Kleineberharts
   
 14.9 Thaya 508  m above sea level A.
   
 18.3 Oberedlitz
   
 21.1 Merkengersch
   
 24.7 Dobersberg 450  m above sea level A.
   
 27.8 Wheel mill
   
 29.5 Waldkirchen an der Thaya 506  m above sea level A.
   
 31.0 Gilgenberg
   
 33.9 Fratres 496  m above sea level A.
   
 34.5 State border between Austria and the Czech Republic
   
 38.9 Slavonice (Zlabings) 521  m above sea level A.
Route - straight ahead
 by Kostelec u Jihlavy

The Thayatalbahn is a disused and already partially demolished railway line in Lower Austria . It is single-track, standard-gauge and not electrified. It branches off the Franz-Josefs-Bahn towards the north at Schwarzenau station and leads via Waidhofen an der Thaya to Zlabings . It is the only international and cross-border railway line that has been taken over by the state of Lower Austria. In total, over 630 kilometers of rail through the state were taken over by the ÖBB , in May 2019 the Schwarzenau - Waidhofen an der Thaya section was reopened for occasional special trains. Also near Schwarzenau, the Zwettler Bahn branches off from the Franz-Josefs-Bahn to the south.

history

Thayatalbahn on a historical map
Waidhofen an der Thaya railway station

The original plan was to connect Waidhofen an der Thaya directly to the Franz-Josefs-Bahn; the Waidhofen residents were negative about it. Only when it was seen that a rail connection meant an economic upswing was a branch rail connection implemented.

The Schwarzenau to Waidhofen an der Thaya railway was officially opened on August 3, 1891, the extension to Zlabings on June 20, 1903. In 1945, cross-border traffic was discontinued and the trains now ended at the Fratres stop.

When the double-track operation on the Franz-Josefs-Bahn was closed in 1959, the line was extended to Schwarzenau station. Until then it began at the Willings junction in km 0.0 and used the right track of the Franz-Josefs-Bahn until there. From then on, this former track served exclusively the Thayatalbahn. The steam locomotive operation ended on May 29, 1976. On January 10, 1977 the Gilgenberg – Fratres section was discontinued. On September 1, 1986, the passenger traffic between Waidhofen an der Thaya and Gilgenberg was discontinued due to unprofitability and replaced by a bus line.

With the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1989, the question of putting the railway line back into operation arose. This met with interest from both the Czechs and Austrian railroad enthusiasts, but not from ÖBB due to the rumored costs of 53 million schillings (3.85 million euros). At the end of 1992, the new Thayatalbahn association was founded, which is committed to reactivating the line. Unfortunately, parts of the route used for freight traffic between Waidhofen an der Thaya and Waldkirchen an der Thaya were damaged by the floods in 2006 and were not repaired until they were closed.

The revitalization of the railway line is planned with the highest priority in the Lower Austrian regional transport concept from 1991, 1997 and 2001. In January 2010, the takeover of the entire route by the state of Lower Austria was agreed with the federal government and the ÖBB as of January 1, 2011. All rail traffic was discontinued with the timetable change on December 12, 2010 and a bus line was introduced for passenger traffic between Schwarzenau and Waidhofen an der Thaya.

Between 2015 and 2017, a cycle path was built on the route between Waidhofen an der Thaya and Slavonice / Zlabings as a section of the Thaya circuit . The construction costs of 7 million euros come from funding models from the state of Lower Austria. The municipalities should take care of the maintenance and care - for this, all municipal and city councils still have to agree to a basic decision made by the state. On May 19, 2019, the section from Schwarzenau to Waidhofen was put back into operation, before some sections were partially renovated. The reopened route is initially used for tourism; there is no daily, year-round traffic.

Conversion into a cycle path from Waidhofen / Thaya

Around the 2010/2011 shutdown, there was a discussion - in some cases very emotional - as to whether the line should be put back into operation or replaced by a cycle path on or next to the tracks.

Recommissioning efforts

Along with the Ybbstalbahn, the Thayatalbahn is one of the most politically controversial railway lines in Lower Austria. The Thayatalbahn was shut down at the request of the state of Lower Austria before it was taken over and against the wishes of parts of the population and some mayors of the Waidhofen / Thaya district. As on other railway lines such as the Ybbstalbahn, the intention is to demolish tracks and build cycle paths on the track . Due to political pressure from the state, the mayors of the district advocated a cycle path on the railway.

Even before the shutdown, a citizens' initiative tried to resume traffic on the entire route. Due to the discontinuation of the Thayatalbahn, contrary to the original promises made by the federal and state sides, the citizens' initiative Pro Thayatalbahn started a cross-border signature campaign in which over 1,300 signatories spoke out in favor of reactivating the Thayatalbahn within a few weeks. In addition to many celebrities from Austria, z. B. Jiří Gruša , former director of the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna and former ambassador to Austria, as well as the civil rights activist, Charter 77 signatory and former Prime Minister Petr Pithart . The petition is addressed personally to Governor Erwin Pröll, who at the presentation of the cross-border Lower Austrian provincial exhibition in 2009 promised to include the gap at the Slavonice-Fratres railway border crossing on his personal list of priorities.

Since there are still questions about the costs (also for the municipalities) and no detailed planning is available, the Neue Thayatalbahn association calls on the municipal and city councils to vote against the fundamental decision made by the state of Lower Austria.

Cost / benefit calculation: bike path / train

According to the association “Verkehrsforum Wald4tel” (formerly Neue Thayatalbahn), the Thayatalbahn (Schwarzenau [Willings junction] to Fratres) has a replacement value of over 35 million euros. The demolition of the tracks and the construction of a new cycle path on the railway line can, however, cost up to 10 million euros. For one kilometer of cycle path, depending on the geographic nature, between 80,000 and 110,000 euros are charged. The entire Thaya circuit is about 90 kilometers long. Accordingly, the cycle path can cost up to 9 million euros. A Czech railway construction company contacted by the Neue Thayatalbahn association estimates the revitalization costs of the Thayatalbahn at around 15 million euros. In view of the cost ratio bike path / train and the expected higher added value for the Thayaland region through a combination of a bike path next to the railway line, there are considerations in the region to use the already numerous bike paths and to create a cycle path next to the Thayatalbahn. A cycle path next to the train is also cheaper because existing goods, accompanying, forest, hiking and cycle paths can be used and networked, and a combination of an attractive cycle path with a cross-border Thayatal railway brings far more added value to the region.

Arguments for the bike path

According to statements from the state of Lower Austria, around 28 million euros would have been necessary for the restoration of the Thayatalbahn (by Austrian companies), but the bike path is much cheaper. Initial estimates were 4.5 million euros, which were later corrected to 6 million euros. Its aim is to boost tourism in the Waldviertel. In the name of the European market, Czech companies are offering the reconstruction for the equivalent of EUR 15 million, but this has never been seriously examined by the state of Lower Austria.

Possible goods transport on the Thayatalbahn

A special feature of the Waldviertel / South Bohemia region is the brisk transport and processing of wood. Dozens of heavy trucks deliver logs to the wood processing companies in the Zwettl district via the four border crossings in the Gmünd and Waidhofen / Thaya districts. These could be delivered to the sawmills in the Zwettl district using the Thayatalbahn and Zwettler Bahn, which is gentle on the environment, people and roads. A study paid for by the state of Lower Austria also proves the economic and economic advantages of the Thayatalbahn for the Waldviertel and South Bohemia regions.

Vehicle material

Until the cessation of passenger traffic in December 2010, passenger traffic between Schwarzenau and Waidhofen / Thaya was operated by class 5047 diesel multiple units. Diesel multiple units of the series 5046 and 5146 operated on the route until 1990 .

Web links

Commons : Thayatalbahn  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Stadtchronik Waidhofen an der Thaya, Volume 1, May 2004 edition
  2. ↑ Opening of operations on the Schwarzenau - Waidhofen an der Thaya local railway. In:  Wiener Zeitung , August 4, 1891, p. 1 (online at ANNO ).Template: ANNO / Maintenance / wrz
  3. ↑ Stadtchronik Waidhofen an der Thaya, Volume 1, May 2004 edition
  4. ↑ Stadtchronik Waidhofen an der Thaya, Volume 2, May 2004 edition
  5. ↑ Stadtchronik Waidhofen an der Thaya, Volume 2, May 2004 edition
  6. ↑ Sideletter Land Lower Austria - Cancellation of transport services at ÖBB , accessed on March 25, 2011
  7. ↑ VVNB info sheet on setting Zwettl-Schwarzenau-Waidhofen / Thaya  ( page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. , accessed December 18, 2010.@1@ 2Template: Toter Link / www.vvnb.at  
  8. ↑ LH Mikl-Leitner opened the new “Thayarunde” cycle path. In: APA OTS. June 24, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2017 .
  9. ↑ Niederösterreichische Nachrichten, local edition Waidhofen an der Thaya, week 08/2011
  10. ↑ The steam locomotive ran again: the railway line was reopened
  11. ↑ Waidhofen will get a train connection again in May
  12. ^ Report of the district papers Waidhofen / Thaya from June 2010 , accessed on March 25, 2011
  13. ^ ORF report of March 1, 2011
  14. ↑ [1] Governor Erwin Pröll at the presentation of the cross-border state exhibition 2009 in Telc with the topic "separated - divided - united"
  15. ↑ [2] Report of the district papers Waidhofen / Thaya: Bahn proponents demand no to cycle path, accessed on March 25, 2011
  16. ^ [3] Report of the district papers Waidhofen / Thaya: Bahn costs only 15 million euros, accessed on March 25, 2011