In the previous year, the Austrian Federal Railways could not meet the statutory punctuality of 95 percent. This is shown by an evaluation by the Agency for Passenger and Passenger Rights, which is based on data from the rail control, the rail infrastructure service company and the ÖBB-Infrastructure AG.

The APF examined a total of 21 million arrivals at transport stations in local and long-distance passenger transport. In the entire local transport of ÖBB-Personenverkehr, the punctuality of the trains in 2022, taking into account train cancellations and unplanned rail replacement services, was 94,8 percent. This means that the level of punctuality in local transport is just below the statutory level of 95 percent. A train is considered punctual in the evaluation if it is delayed by a maximum of five minutes and 29 seconds.

The main reason for this development was the recovery in ridership following the COVID-19 pandemic. More travelers were transported than in 2021, which led to longer stopping times or exceeding stopping times at the traffic stations. The fewest punctual trains (90,2 percent) ran in November 2022. This was due to the rail strike on November 28, which largely paralyzed public transport in Austria.

The trains in Vorarlberg are the most punctual with an average punctuality of 96,6 percent. Upper Austria and Salzburg share the last place in the punctuality ranking, each with a punctuality of 93,3 percent in local transport.

Three sections of the route did not have a punctuality of more than 95 percent in any month of the last year. In Carinthia, the route between Villach and Tarvisio-Boscoverde (IT) stands out negatively. On average, the route from/to Italy recorded a punctuality of 75,6 percent. The months of June and August were particularly challenging, when only every second train was able to arrive on time due to delays from abroad.

In Upper Austria, the analysis shows two routes in which the legally prescribed punctuality value of 95 percent could not be achieved in any month. The cross-border route from Pregarten to Horní Dvořiště (CZ) recorded a punctuality rate of 79,9 percent, that between Wels and Attnang-Puchheim 87,6 percent.

Compensation for season tickets

If the value of 95 percent is not reached in regional transport for at least one month, passengers will receive compensation once a year at the end of the validity of their annual ticket. While a punctuality rate of at least 95 percent applies in regional traffic (city traffic is exempt from this regulation), railway companies that only operate in long-distance traffic (RegioJet, Westbahn) generally set their own punctuality level. At the moment, for example, the Westbahn has a punctuality rate of 92 percent.

If the statutory level of punctuality of 95 percent for all railways in Austria (or 92 percent for Westbahn) is not achieved in one month, passengers with an association annual ticket (or regional KlimaTicket) will receive compensation at the end of the annual ticket's validity period transferred.

The KlimaTicket Austria is a product of One Mobility Ticketing GmbH and represents a nationwide annual ticket. With this ticket, individual journeys or delays are not compensated. A punctuality level of 93 percent has been set by law, and if this is not achieved in a month of validity, flat-rate compensation is paid after the climate ticket has expired. Affected persons are entitled to a maximum of ten percent of the compensation basis in one month. The basis for compensation is the ticket price minus the share of the price for transport in scheduled motor transport (buses), in city traffic and in branch lines that are not networked. Reimbursement contributions of less than four euros can be excluded from a payment.