Competition and Cooperation in High-speed Rail and Air Traffic. Intermodal Travel in Europe and Perspectives for Austria

The constant expansion of high-speed rail lines, ongoing urbanisation, growing globalisation and several other factors have led to an increased overlapping of market fields in rail and air traffic. In addition to greater competition, new possibilities for cooperation have arisen, which have become the focus of recent political and economic agendas. The article shows that the desired effects are, however, often unclear, bound to specific routes, overestimated or equivocal, and that the overall benefit and justification of investments in infrastructure therefore remain ambiguous. By focussing on the Austrian market and Vienna International Airport with its newly built long-distance train station, it can be shown that, although there are indicators for positive development, only an ex-post analysis can provide reliable effects.