Koralmbahn project in criticism: Million crossing and building delay!

Koralmbahn project in criticism: Million crossing and building delay!

Graz, Österreich - The Koralmahn, one of the most important infrastructure projects in Austria, will start operating in December 2025. According to a report by the Court of Auditors, defects in the project implementation were found between 2012 and 2023. The total costs of the project amount to 6.139 billion euros. This is a cost increase of five percent or 282.4 million euros since 2012, which are primarily due to difficulties in propulsion in the coral tunnel.

These challenges are caused by geological conditions that led to increased still stands, reduced tunneling speed and increased machine wear. The ÖBB, which is responsible for the project, paid the stills in the case of tunnel propulsion differently from the contract, which resulted in possible savings between 7.52 and 9.23 million euros in the event of a contractually correct billing. The external allocation of the construction supervision was also criticized, since ÖBB only carried out overarching project management with its own staff. Experts also warn of a potential loss of know-how through the frequent commissioning of external experts. The Court of Auditors therefore recommend that the ÖBB should strengthen its internal know-how.

risks for the project schedule

In January 2024, “considerable risks” for compliance with the timely start of operation were found. This includes delivery bottlenecks and a tight time frame for the necessary operating permit by 2025. These factors could additionally burden the planned schedule for the Koralbahn. The project includes a total length of 130 kilometers, including 33 kilometers of Koralmtunnel.

In addition to the challenges of the KoralMahn, ÖBB is investing more than 2 billion euros in various infrastructure projects annually. The overall investment in the Austrian infrastructure sector by the ÖBB, ASFINAG and the Federal Immobiliengesellschaft (BIG) is considerable. While ÖBB bears more than 60 % of the annual infrastructure investments with over 2 billion euros, ASFINAG invests over 1 billion euros and the BIG around 500 million euros in various construction projects.

other large infrastructure projects

The Koralbahn is part of an extensive plan to modernize the infrastructure in Austria. In addition to the Koralbahn, other large projects such as the Semmering base tunnel, with a length of 27.3 kilometers and a cost forecast of 3.3 billion euros, as well as various projects from ASFINAG and BIG are also realized. The ASFINAG projects include the expansion of the A7 Mühlkreis Autobahn and the new construction of the A26 Linz motorway, which take over a total of several hundred million euros.

These initiatives are crucial for improving the transport infrastructure in Austria and promoting economic development, despite the difficulties that occurred on the KoralMBahn.

5min.at reports of the recent developments to the KoralMBahn, while steiermark.Ork.at provides further information on the infrastructural investments in Styria. You can also find a comprehensive overview of all major infrastructure projects in Austria on Report.at .