More and more ÖBB employees are victims of violent attacks – and these seem to be getting more and more violent. According to the response to an FPÖ parliamentary inquiry by Infrastructure Minister Leonore Gewessler (Greens), there had been 30 acts of violence as of April this year, which ended in a hospital or medical treatment of the victims.
One of the objectives of the FPÖ’s request was to test the success of the “Gemeinsam.Sicher” campaign, a collaboration between the police and the ÖBB. Gewessler stressed that “the level of security at domestic train stations is very high”. Efforts are also being made to increase “the subjective sense of security” among passengers.
Nevertheless, the Green Minister – probably not least because of several mask disputes – had to present worrying numbers:
- In 2020, 75 attacks on ÖBB employees with injuries were recorded.
- In 2021 there were 87 (by far the most – namely 31 – in Vienna).
- In 2022 (end of April), 30 attacks were registered, which were accompanied by sick leave for those affected – here too, half of the attacks took place in Vienna.
Of the more than 500 external security personnel employed by the federal railways, 17 were attacked and injured throughout Austria in 2020. Last year there were 24, this year six at the end of April.
Although the material damage to trains has decreased slightly in absolute figures, the total damage caused is also increasing.
- In 2021 140 cases of material damage with a damage amount of more than 5,000 euros were registered on the trains themselves. ÖBB estimates the total damage caused by this at just under 2.92 million euros.
- Last year, 155 cases of material damage resulted in damage totaling 2.26 million euros.
- At the end of April of this year, 42 damage cases in trains had already been identified, with a total damage of 895,000 euros.
Vandalism in train stations is also expensive for ÖBB. Since 2020, 1,045 such incidents have been registered with a total damage of 1.83 million euros. At 915,000 euros, half of this amount came from stations in Lower Austria.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
