Salzburg holds climate ticket price at 399 euros for 2027

Salzburg’s climate ticket will cost 399 euros in 2027, while bus and rail services are set to expand despite budget cuts, ORF reports. Deputy Governor Stefan Schnöll, the outgoing transport official, announced the plans after budget negotiations.

The state’s two-year budget, presented on Tuesday, provides for about 23 million bus kilometres and 6.28 million train kilometres to be ordered from public transport operators next year. That is 850,000 more bus kilometres and 140,000 more train kilometres than in 2026. Planned improvements include services for commuters travelling between Schwarzach in Pongau and Zell am See in Pinzgau.

Rail investment will remain a priority. Passengers on the Salzburg Local Railway and the Pinzgau Local Railway are among those expected to benefit, with the first new tram-train vehicles due to be delivered this year. The Straßwalchen railway station in Flachgau will also be renovated in cooperation with the Austrian Federal Railways and local municipalities.

The state will increase annual funding for road repairs from about 20 million euros to 36 million euros in each of the next two years. Work on an escape and rescue tunnel for the Schmitten Tunnel in Zell am See, on its central-southern section, is due to begin in June 2027. Preliminary work around the portal, including ramps and sewer relocations, is planned after Easter.

Plans are also advancing to replace the Karolinen Bridge in Salzburg, also known as the Nonntal Bridge. A design competition is due to conclude by the middle of next year, with construction scheduled to begin in 2029. The bridge, which is about 90 years old, has reached the end of its service life.

The S-Bike bicycle-sharing scheme, introduced this year, has recorded more than 100,000 journeys covering about 363,000 kilometres. The state plans to expand the service. Two-thirds of its users hold a climate ticket, which gives them the first 30 minutes of each ride free.