Financing Railway Construction in Critical Zones by Road-Pricing

Over the past decade, truck transportation in Austria grew at almost double the rate of rail goods transport. EU enlargement and the expiry of the eco-points system will further accelerate the growth of road transport. Ever more frequent traffic jams, a high incidence of accidents, enormous energy consumption, the emission of greenhouse gases by motor vehicles, as well as the noise, dust and exhaust gas burden that road traffic imposes on those living in the vicinity have caused European politicians to reconsider the transport issue. With a view to fostering sustainable growth, the idea is to re-invigorate rail transport. In its white paper ("European Transport Policy for 2010: Time to Decide"), the European Commission proposes to finance rail infrastructure construction projects in critical zones by levying a road toll on trucks.