Questions and answers

Additional capacity on the rail network

• Why are trains sometimes overcrowded despite everything?

  The ÖBB rail network operates an open access system. Passengers buy a ticket and can catch any train on the selected connection within the period of validity. Depending on the chosen sales channel and distance, a ticket can be valid for up to two months - national tickets are valid for 2 days, international tickets for a maximum of 15 days. InterRail tickets are valid for max. 1 month and EURail tickets for max. 2 months.

  Someone who buys a Vienna - Graz - Vienna ticket on 2 December, for example, can travel on a relatively quiet morning as well as on the afternoon of 23 December. Ticket sales in themselves therefore do not help with planning additional capacity. ÖBB relies on its many years of experience and recommends making reservations on busy travel days. Ultimately, however, no one can predict with one hundred per cent certainty how many passengers will board which train. On the other hand, the open access system has the advantage of giving customers maximum flexibility. And that’s what we decided to do.

  In many other countries, the railway system is a closed one. Reservations are compulsory for long-distance trains, so you are tied to a particular train from the outset. This has the advantage of ensuring you have a seat. However, the disadvantage is that the ticket expires if you do not catch the train you want or change your mind.

• Why can’t more coaches be attached to a train?

  There are inherent limits to how much capacity can be added to a train. No train can be longer than the shortest platform at which it stops, as otherwise the passengers could not disembark. A train with a traction unit and 16 coaches is the longest that can be operated in Austria. A train with this many coaches is already more than 400 metres long. A double-unit Railjet service is more or less as long as this. It goes without saying that ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG also has to allocate the available coaches in the best possible way on busy travel days.

• When and why is the capacity of a train increased?

  There are two major factors that influence the planning of additional capacity: experience and a large number of reservations. ÖBB knows from experience that on certain days of the week - e.g. Friday and Sunday afternoons - there are more passengers travelling on long-distance services than usual. The days before public holidays - e.g. 22 and 23 December - are also notable for being particularly busy. Reservations are also analysed. If the booking system indicates a high number of reservations for a train, its capacity is increased.

• Why not simply buy more coaches?

  ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG, as a commercially operating company, can only purchase rolling stock if there is commercial justification for doing so. Coaches that are not used for most of the year and only run for a few weeks a year would quickly be considered an example of waste. It is also important to implement the recommendations of the Austrian Court of Audit, which requires the most economical use of available funds possible and repeatedly scrutinises this at ÖBB. In any case, ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG has enough coaches for long-distance transport to cover even the busiest travelling days in terms of capacity.

• How is capacity increased in daily train services?

  Depending on the type of train, either additional coaches are attached (e.g. for an IC) or a second train set is allocated (e.g. for a Railjet). In some cases, a double unit service can be operated (traction unit - several carriages - traction unit -several carriages).

• Why can’t (more) special trains be added?

  Unfortunately, there are limits to how far the timetable can be extended. Trains must maintain minimum distances between stations, so the number of train paths is limited, which is why it is not possible to run as many special trains as might be required. For instance, ÖBB-Personenverkehr AG currently runs as many trains as possible on the southern railway line between Vienna Meidling and Wiener Neustadt.

• Why doesn’t ÖBB simply hire more coaches?

  Additional coaches, such as those hired from another railway company, are not always available. What might work for major events - such as the Kitzbühel weekend - is not possible in December, for example. Every railway company needs its own rolling stock for the Christmas period.