Image: OÖN/Diabl
In September, things weren’t looking good at all for the light rail and the associated trolleybus routes to the south of Linz. The tone between the city and the country became rougher, and an agreement threatened to fail due to details. Then there was a call to order from Governor Thomas Stelzer (VP), a meeting between him and Linz Mayor Klaus Luger (SP) and since then the light rail has been a top priority. The next meeting is planned for next week, the light rail will be back on track, according to the message.
More on this: The light rail “is back on track”
“We want to support negotiations”
In order to advance the project, the non-partisan initiative “Get Regional Stadtbahn Linz on Rail NOW” is now collecting signatures. “We want to support the negotiations that are currently taking place so that a result can be achieved in the foreseeable future,” says Klaus Falkinger, spokesman for ARGE PRO Mühlkreisbahn and mayor of Kleinzell im Mühlkreis. The initiators want to use the time window until the National Council election. This will take place regularly in autumn 2024. It is unclear whether a new government will support the project as much as the current one. It is therefore important that the financing agreement with the federal government is concluded beforehand. The prerequisite for this is an agreement between the city and the country. Falkinger and his colleagues are vehemently calling for this solidarity. “We want to give Luger and Stelzer a boost with the petition,” says Josef Thurmhofer, former state director of the ÖAMTC Upper Austria.
Image: OÖN/Diabl
The goal is 15,000 signatures
The signatures are intended to show that an entire region is behind the project. The goal is 15,000 by mid-December. They should be handed over to those responsible for politics before Christmas. There is no advertising budget. “We have to knock on many addresses,” says Thurmhofer. So far, the Johannes Kepler University, the Chamber of Labor and the ÖAMTC have promised to inform their members and students. There will also be actions in the 15 communities of the ARGE PRO Mühlkreisbahn, as well as in many companies in Linzer Industriezeile, 46 percent of whose employees come from the Mühlviertel and would benefit from the light rail. “Please come to the financing agreement quickly. It’s taking a very long time and at some point the employees’ patience will run out,” says Thomas Eichlberger, works council chairman and spokesman for the works councils on mobility issues in Industriezeile.
From the archive: The long wait for the Linz light rail
From Vienna to Kleinzell in two to three hours
The arguments for the light rail are well known. “We have to pick people up from home and get them to work with as few changes as possible,” says Robert Struger, former regional manager for Upper Austria at ÖBBpersonalverkehr AG. The light rail is also a key element in solving Linz’s traffic problems. But tourism would also benefit from a good connection to the Mühlviertel. “From Vienna to Kleinzell or from Salzburg to Rohrbach in two to three hours,” says Falkinger, looking into the future. The initiative does not want to comment on the points of contention between the city and the country in the planning of light rail and trolleybuses reported by the OÖN. Just this much: “Let’s let the experts work,” says Stuger.
Support comes from the Greens. “The wrangling must stop and the project can finally be implemented. The voice of the population is extremely important and helpful. Their votes will further increase the pressure on those responsible to quickly find solutions and consensus,” says the Green mobility spokeswoman in the state parliament, Dagmar Engl.
The petition was set up on the “openpetition” platform and can be signed digitally there. Signatures are also collected analogously.
Click here for the petition: openpetition.de/petition/online/jetzt-regional-stadtbahn-linz-auf-schiene-bring
My themes
For your saved topics were
new articles found.
info By clicking on the icon you can add the keyword to your topics.
info
By clicking on the icon you open your “my topics” page. They have of 15 keywords saved and would have to remove keywords.
info By clicking on the icon you can remove the keyword from your topics.
Add the topic to your topics.
Source: Nachrichten
