“Only boarding allowed with a valid seat reservation”: Travelers have recently been increasingly annoyed by this sentence, which appears on the blue overhead display boards on the platform. The reason is overcrowded trains – especially on weekends or before public holidays – and ÖBB’s attempt to control the flow of passengers.
After the utilization of the ÖBB trains, especially in long-distance traffic, increased again and the state railway urgently recommends seat reservations, especially before busy travel dates, there is apparently no longer a ban on thinking in the direction of compulsory reservations. “We are looking at all the options,” said an ÖBB spokesman in the “Kurier” (Tuesday edition). Most recently, various international models were analyzed and the company’s own passengers were asked about reservations.
“More of a steering issue”
In the next few weeks everything will be brought together and then a decision will be made on how to proceed. All options are on the table, from mandatory reservations to measures to move short-haul travelers from long-distance to local trains and thereby free up capacity. In any case, real-time information about the occupancy of trains is to be expanded. Here, for example, it is also about specific information about alternative trains with lower occupancy.
“Honestly, one has to say that it is more of a steering issue than a capacity issue,” said the spokesman. “The Tangente is always closed on Friday afternoons, no matter how many lanes you build.”
Extra trimmings on travel weekends
According to ÖBB information, there is sufficient capacity on all routes throughout the day. The fading of the corona pandemic, high fuel prices and the climate ticket annual pass have caused the number of rail passengers to rise sharply again this year after the corona-related slump in 2020 and 2021. In long-distance transport, capacity utilization has already been slightly above the pre-crisis level in recent weeks. Especially in cross-border long-distance traffic – both in the day and night trains – there is “particularly strong demand”, said the ÖBB to the APA these days.
On busy travel weekends such as Ascension Day, Pentecost and Corpus Christi, ÖBB is providing up to 10,000 additional seats with more sets and extra trains. According to the spokesman, there shouldn’t be more for cost reasons, the “Kurier” quotes him as saying.
Source: Nachrichten
