infrastructure usage fee
Basic information about road tolls
Infrastructure operators charge track access rights holders a track access charge for the use of the railway infrastructure. The calculation is based on various parameters. All infrastructure operators use train kilometers, i.e., the distance traveled, as a uniform basis for calculation. The majority of companies also use gross tonne-kilometers (weight of vehicle and load multiplied by the distance traveled). These two parameters provide a good representation of the wear and tear on the rail infrastructure.
In addition to the track access charge, those entitled to track capacity are also charged for the use of service facilities (stations, car wash facilities, terminals, etc.). You can find more information here.
In addition to ÖBB-Infrastruktur AG, the largest infrastructure operator, there are several smaller infrastructure operators in Austria that are also responsible for operating secondary railways. These include Neusiedlerseebahn, Wiener Lokalbahnen GmbH, Steiermärkische Landesbahnen, Salzburger Lokalbahn, and Raab-Oedenburg-Ebenfurter Eisenbahn AG.
Basics and composition of the road toll
The legal basis for calculating and collecting track access charges is primarily Directive 2012/34/EU establishing a single European railway area. This directive was implemented in Austria in the Railway Act 1957 (EisbG). An overview of the legal basis can be found here.
The track access charge for access to railway infrastructure, including infrastructure connected to service facilities, and for the provision of the minimum access package, shall in principle be set at the level of the costs directly incurred as a result of train operations (see Article 31(3) of Directive 2012/34/EU; Section 67 of the EisbG). The law also specifies what exactly is included in the minimum access package: In addition to the use of railway infrastructure (including points and junctions), this includes train control, including signaling, regulation, dispatching, and the transmission and provision of information on train movements (see Annex II No. 1 of Directive 2012/34/EU; Section 58 of the EisbG). In order to standardize the method of calculating fee rates, the European Commission has issued the Implementing Regulation on the modalities for calculating these costs, which are incurred directly as a result of train operations (= direct costs) (DVO [EU] 2015/909). The Implementing Regulation applies automatically in all Member States without having to be specifically transposed into national law.
Furthermore, it is possible to charge a higher fee for the duration of congestion on fully utilized sections of track (surcharge for capacity bottlenecks; see Section 67a EisbG). The charges may be further modulated to provide an incentive to reduce the environmental impact of trains, such as noise. However, this may not generate additional revenue (see Section 67b EisbG).
If the track access charges are not sufficient to cover the infrastructure operator's full costs, the operator may levy market surcharges on top of these charges (Section 67d EisbG). However, certain conditions must be met for this: The procedure must be based on efficient, transparent, and non-discriminatory principles. The best possible competitiveness of the segments of the railway market must be ensured. The surcharges must not exclude market segments from using the infrastructure. The infrastructure operator forms market segments, publishes them, and sets surcharges for each market segment. The amount of the surcharges must be set so that the provision of train services is economically feasible for the railway undertakings (i.e., can be borne by the market segment). The setting of surcharges requires the approval of the Schienen-Control .
If a route or section of route is only built on condition that it will be financed in future by charges, a higher track access charge may be levied for this purpose (Section 67e EisbG).
Publication of the road toll
Infrastructure operators must set out the charging principles and tariffs in their rail network usage conditions. This includes, for example, sufficient information on charges (Section 59(4)(2) EisbG). The rail network usage conditions must be made available free of charge in electronic form on the infrastructure operator's website in an accessible manner.