Cash can be incorporated into the constitution, but the road to cash is often long for individual citizens: there are no ATMs in 317 Austrian municipalities, including 26 in Styria. And in many places, people are digging deep into their pockets to make sure it doesn’t get dismantled.
If you want easy access to cash, sometimes you have to dig deep into your wallet. The municipality of Hirschegg-Pack in western Styria has experienced this: after the bank branch failed, one ATM remained, but there were not enough solutions to make it profitable for the operator. So the municipality always has to inject money…
“First it was 3,000 euros a year, now it is 9,000 euros,” says mayor Johann Schmid to the “Krone”. A lot of money, but it will be even more expensive. From next year it should be 27,000 euros! The operating company has now lowered the offer to 17,000 euros after initial outrage. Schmid still hopes things will start moving. Because the case burns under the nails of many not only on the packaging.
Mayor: “We need cash!”
A jump in the Gesäuse: The bank branch in Altenmarkt near St. Gallen also closed a few years ago – “overnight”, says Mayor Hannes Andrä. The municipality itself stepped in, an ATM was placed in the entrance area of the municipal office.
Last year, 5400 euros were transferred to the operator in Vienna. But you can’t do without the machine, emphasizes Andrä: “If there’s a party going on or someone wants to visit the inn, you need cash. Any infrastructure that is lost affects village life.”
No ATM in 317 Austrian municipalities
While in Hirschegg-Pack and Altenmarkt the cost of the ATM is the big problem, elsewhere people would like to have an ATM. According to National Bank data, by the end of 2021, this service was not available in 317 Austrian municipalities, including 26 in Styria.
The database also indicates how far people have to travel to the nearest ATM on average. The path is furthest in the Salzburg community of Muhr in the Hohe Tauern National Park (12.7 km) and in Zell in Lower Carinthia (12.4 km). In Styria, the residents of Radmer (district Leoben) have the longest route with 11.2 kilometers, they have to drive to Hieflau or Eisenerz.
Local suppliers can pay money
“But the situation is somewhat defused because our local supplier can pay cash at the checkout,” reports Mayor Ludwig Gottsbacher. The community is also a postal partner and many elderly residents have their accounts here.
An ATM would even be possible in Radmer. “But we should have donated 12,000 euros,” says Gottsbacher. Too much money for the small place.
“It is always said that the customer frequency is too low”
But not only remote communities are affected, but also some communities around the district towns of Weiz, Hartberg and Judenburg – and the thriving Stattegg northeast of Graz. While most Statteggers commute to the capital and can withdraw money there, attempts have been made for some time to have an ATM in the city, said Deputy Mayor Philipp Ozek: “We have spoken to all the banks in the area. but they always say the customer frequency is too low.”
Politically, the SPÖ is particularly involved in the issue. Lower Austrian party leader Sven Hergovich calls for an ATM in every municipality. The Styrian comrades do not want to join the party, but party leader Anton Lang says: “Anyone who wants to withdraw money should be able to find the opportunity in his environment.” He sees a need for the federal government. Symbolically including cash in the constitution “will not be enough”.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
