Kahlenberg Cable Car: Question Of EIA Obligation Remains Open

In the ongoing proceedings on the question of whether an EIA is required for the Kahlenberg cable car, the Federal Administrative Court has overturned the decision of the Vienna state government and referred the matter back to the state government for a new review of the EIA requirement. The question of whether an EIA is required for the Kahlenberg cable car is therefore being reopened. In an initial statement on this, the project operator regrets the associated delays, also from a climate protection perspective.

"We were and are convinced that the decision of the EIA authority in Vienna was made with the necessary care. The fact that the Federal Administrative Court does not share this assessment is of course to be respected," says Hannes Dejaco, Managing Director of Genial Tourismus- und Projektentwicklung GmbH. "The fact that the court is not conducting the necessary investigations itself, but has referred the matter back to the EIA authority of the City of Vienna, is unfortunately leading to further delays for our project."

The decision issued today by the Federal Administrative Court has still not clarified, around 1.5 years after the application for the review of the EIA requirement, which official procedure should be used to approve the cable car. The decision of the Federal Administrative Court announced today does not answer this question either, but instructs the authority to carry out further investigations. This is regrettable not least from a climate protection perspective, as the cable car would permanently reduce motorized traffic in the popular Kahlenberg recreational area, says Dejaco.

"Our primary goal remains to ensure the greatest possible legal certainty for all those involved. In doing so, we always keep sustainability and environmental compatibility in mind," stressed the project operator. Despite the renewed review, he remains confident that "at the end of what will probably be a very long process" and regardless of the procedure ultimately used, the Kahlenberg cable car will be found to have complied with all approval criteria.

The Kahlenberg cable car project enables environmentally friendly development of the local recreation areas Donauinsel Nord and Kahlenberg and will thus offer – in addition to an important tourist attraction for Vienna – a modern mobility offer in urban areas for all Viennese in the future.

Starting from the valley station at the U4 in Heiligenstadt, the Kahlenberg cable car runs a total distance of 5.7 kilometers across the Danube in just six minutes to the Donauinsel Nord station, from where it goes to Strebersdorf and finally up to the Kahlenberg mountain station.

Due to the direct connection to the U4 Heiligenstadt, you can largely avoid driving your own car. Floridsdorf gets a direct connection to the U4 station Heiligenstadt. The project will ultimately relieve traffic in Döbling and close the gap in the public transport connection on the northern side of the Danube bank. In the Strebersdorf station, there will be a Park & ​​Ride facility with 630 parking spaces in a completely landscaped multi-storey car park and a Bike & Ride station with around 1,000 bike boxes and e-bike charging stations for commuters and visitors from outside Disposal.

According to independent reports, the Kahlenberg cable car can be expected to reduce motorized private transport and annual CO2 emissions up to the Kahlenberg by up to 50 percent. Instead, the cable car takes less than 20 minutes from Heiligenstadt to the Kahlenberg - and it's completely climate-neutral. Due to the low land use and the unsealing of the Kahlenberg car park, the construction project even has a positive unsealing balance.

Further information and details about the Kahlenberg cable car can be found at www.seilbahn-kahlenberg.at