Summary sheet
The project will support the construction of approximately 8 km of track through the city centre of the Linz agglomeration in Upper Austria, along with the acquisition of 34 new tram trains. Twenty of these new trains will replace existing trains on the S5 line, which are at or beyond the end of their useful life. This is part of a broader initiative to develop an expanded regional tram-train network, known as the Regional-Stadtbahn Linz.
The implementation and cooperation within the framework of the project will be structured as follows: The project promoter, Schiene OÖ GmbH & Co KG—a wholly owned subsidiary of OÖ Verkehrsholding GmbH (itself fully owned by the Province of Upper Austria / Land Oberösterreich)—will provide the newly acquired tram trains to a selected transport operator for the provision of transport services in exchange for an appropriate fee. The selection and commissioning of the transport operator will be carried out by the sister company, OÖ Verkehrsverbund-Organisations GmbH Nfg & Co KG (also 100% owned by the Province of Upper Austria / Land Oberösterreich), in line with its legal and statutory responsibilities. The rail infrastructure constructed under the project will be managed by Schiene OÖ GmbH & Co KG.
Where and if applicable and based on a risk-based approach as defined in the EIB Group Environmental and Social Policy, the requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive (EIA) 2011/92/EU (as amended by Directive 2014/52/EU), Birds Directive 2009/147/EC and Habitats Directive 92/43/EEC will be checked during appraisal. Some of the new trains will replace age expired rolling stock, their owner will dispose of them in accordance with Austrian law.
The EIB will require the promoter to ensure that contracts for implementation of the project have been/will be tendered in accordance with the applicable EU procurement legislation, Directive 2014/24/EU and Directive 89/665/EEC as interpreted by the Court of Justice of the EU, with publication of tender notices in the EU Official Journal, as and where required. The rolling stock is procured as part of a shared procurement initiative; several public transport authorities in Germany and Austria jointly procured new tram trains. The contract for this project has been awarded to Stadler Pankow, based in Germany, in 2022 following a negotiated procedure (contract award notice reference 403367-2022).