TRIESTE – After eight months of intensive works, the Tauern railway tunnel will reopen to freight and passenger traffic on July 14, as scheduled.
The strategic link between Salzburg and Carinthia will thus be fully operational again, following a major modernization effort involving around 500 workers and extensive structural interventions. The reopening is a key step for rail logistics along Austria’s north–south axis and for the Port of Trieste (less so for the Slovenian port of Koper).
Both container traffic and trailer flows from Turkey via Ro-Ro vessels have been affected by the closure. Since November 2024, actual delays have varied significantly, adding to those already scheduled. On average, many trains saw transit times increase by roughly four hours.
This challenging period appears to have been handled reasonably well through various measures, including rerouting and use of the Brenner Pass.
The works included vault restoration and the installation of a rigid concrete track bed along more than four kilometers, as well as replacement of the overhead line with a modern ceiling-mounted conductor and upgrades to signaling and safety systems.
For passengers, a first visible change came on July 5, with the partial resumption of the shuttle service for cars and bicycles between Böckstein and Mallnitz.
From July 14, passenger services will fully resume, featuring renovated stations in the Gastein Valley.
A second phase of works on the tunnel, focused on the southern portal, is already scheduled for the first half of 2027.
The Tauernbahn is a crucial north–south rail link connecting the North Adriatic ports to Central and Eastern Europe. The last major interventions date back to 2009 (in 2023, the tunnel was closed due to a vault collapse). The Tauern tunnel, which measures 8,371 meters in length, has been in service since 1909.
