In the future, the city will rely on the S-Bahn with a tunnel through the city center. Experts spent a year examining five concepts for strengths and weaknesses – the subway is the most expensive variant with investment costs of more than 3.5 billion euros, also in terms of maintenance, the two S-Bahn tunnel projects are with 2 .2 billion significantly cheaper.
engage commuters
“The two S-Bahn systems, short and long, actually only mean that existing S-Bahn lines run through the city,” said City Planning Director Wolfgang Werle. It is about making public transport attractive not only for the people of Graz, but also for commuters in the surrounding area: 790,000 are counted daily in Graz, said City Councilor Judith Schwentner (Greens), every second trip goes beyond the city limits .
Climate protection, accessibility of the surrounding area, costs
The S-Bahn was now politically chosen on the basis of three criteria: “The S-Bahn tunnel variants, namely a short and a long one, appear to be the best way for Graz – due to climate protection, the accessibility of the surrounding area, but also the costs.”
No referendum
The coalition of KPÖ, Greens and SPÖ agrees that there will be no referendum, as promised recently in the municipal council. Mayor Elke Kahr (KPÖ) said: “Personally, I think there has been enough discussion over many years. Don’t be angry with me because it’s much too complex – no politician can do that either. That’s why it was right to let the experts discuss it. That was done, the decision is clear.”
Final decision by the end of the year
Which S-Bahn variant will be used will be decided at the end of the year. The task now is to secure the financing – the project will cost more than two billion euros. It is hoped to achieve third-party funding from the federal, state and city governments.