Police investigation – glacier marriage in Tyrol: fraud in the referendum?

As a result of the referendum result, the Pitztaler Gletscherbahnen canceled the project for good. But will the turning point come now – months later? The State Police of Tyrol has launched an investigation into suspected electoral fraud, an APA police spokesperson confirms a report from “TT”. According to the charges, signatures were forged or voting cards were filled in by others than the person entitled to vote.

A wafer-thin majority against ‘marriage’
353 eligible voters had voted against the merger. Five fewer voters, 348, had voted “yes”. Shortly after the vote, the Pitztaler Gletscherbahn withdrew from the project, which had started in 2016 and was subsequently shut down.

Projects with a lot of headwind
The “Glacier Marriage” has faced strong headwinds for years. An alliance made up of the WWF, Alpine Club and wildlife enthusiasts vehemently opposed the merger. At the end of April, a citizens’ initiative petition with about 168,000 signatures was handed over to the Tyrolean state government.

With an investment volume of 130 million euros, three new cableways and 60 hectares of additional slopes were planned. However, the oral environmental impact assessment (EIA) originally planned for January 2020 had already been postponed twice at the request of the project operators. If the procedure had continued, the documents would have had to be renewed.