Residents report recurring nighttime horn blasts at Bruck station

Residents near Bruck an der Leitha railway station have reported loud signal horns during the night and early morning for months, ORF reported. ÖBB said technical faults affecting individual Talent train units may be triggering the horns unintentionally.

Several residents told ORF that the noise had most recently been heard at about 3:30 a.m. on September 3. One resident said the problem had existed since June and occurred regularly, with each horn lasting about one or two minutes.

The signals were so loud that they woke residents, one said. Even with the windows closed, it was “nearly impossible” to go back to sleep.

Residents said the trains remained stationary at the station while the horns sounded. One described the noise as a continuous two-minute tone rather than a brief warning signal.

ÖBB said it had identified technical faults in individual Talent train units that could cause the unintended activations. The operator said there had already been indications of such activations at the end of May and that the affected train units had been inspected. A manual intervention to prevent the sound was not possible, it said, adding that work was under way to resolve the fault permanently.

Residents also criticised ÖBB’s communication. One said more than 15 complaint emails had gone unanswered and that telephone calls had produced no result.

“We fully understand that noise events, particularly at night and in the early morning, are very distressing, and we expressly apologise for the inconvenience caused,” ÖBB spokesman Christopher Seif said.