"On The Leisure Track Through Styria" A Cooperation Between The Styrian Transport Association And The Styrian Cable Cars
"On the leisure track through Styria" is the motto of the S-Bahn, RegioBus & RegioBahn. Styrian public transport offers many opportunities to get to know Styria from new perspectives. A cooperation between the Styrian Transport Association and the Styrian cable cars highlights how to ideally combine public transport and cable cars for leisure activities.
The S-Bahn (suburban train) and RegioBahn (regional bus) offer an exciting journey of discovery through Styria. In addition to city breaks, excursions to castles and palaces, or culinary delights, adventures in the Styrian mountains are also on offer. The S-Bahn (suburban train), RegioBahn (regional train), and RegioBus (regional bus) provide easy access to most of the valley stations of Styria's 19 cable cars operating in summer. Styrian cable cars allow you to discover the local mountains. You save yourself many meters of elevation gain, and your energy can be used for leisurely alpine hikes or challenging summit climbs. The combination of the S-Bahn (suburban train), RegioBahn (regional train), RegioBus, and Styrian cable cars also makes cross-country skiing possible, because—unlike with a car—you don't have to return to the starting point. Public transport allows you to enjoy the trip with family or friends even on the way there—and also helps avoid existing parking problems on site.
"During the statewide RegioBus and S-Bahn planning, particular attention was paid to ensuring good connections to important local recreational areas and leisure destinations, especially for leisure traffic. The Styrian cable cars are also well connected by rail and bus," said State Councilor Claudia Holzer, pleased with this year's cooperation between the transport association and the Styrian cable cars. "We have established leisure traffic as a third pillar of public transport alongside school and commuter transport. In leisure time, people have the time and leisure to try something new. Thus, current non-users of public transport are most likely to try the S-Bahn or the many new RegioBus connections during their leisure time or on excursions – trips to the Styrian cable cars with their attractive summer program are particularly suitable in this regard."
Cable cars are a key to Austria's tourism success and create broad added value in the region: "Cable cars are the leading product in the mountains. We are trendsetters, even in summer tourism, which already accounts for up to 15 percent of our annual revenue," says Daniel Berchthaller, Managing Director of Reiteralm Bergbahnen and Deputy Chairman of the 19 Styrian cable car companies , emphasizing the importance of the Styrian cable car industry.
According to recent surveys among guests, over a third of people visit the mountains specifically for a summit ride on the cable car. "Hiking, mountain biking, children's and family activities, the magnificent panorama that allows for wonderful photos: the mountain experience offers all of this," says Berchthaller. Whether young or old, whether with family or friends, whether sporty or relaxed: "The Styrian mountains have something to offer everyone." In a survey conducted by "Austria Tourism," over 13 million mountain vacationers listed Austria as their preferred travel destination. The cooperation with public transport now brings an additional sustainability benefit for guests, says Berchthaller: "The cable cars are already electrified – together with the Verbund line, the journey is now also sustainable! We are delighted to be part of this great cooperation and to set the tone as a driver of innovation," says Berchthaller.
Peter Gspaltl, Managing Director of the Styrian Transport Association, offers the perfect ticket: "For travel to the Styrian summer cable cars, as well as to the many other exciting leisure destinations, we recommend the affordable Styrian Leisure Ticket. It's valid on Saturdays, Sundays, and public holidays and costs €14 per person—allowing you to travel around Styria for a whole day."
