Logistics encompasses all upstream and downstream processes along the value chain, thus forming the backbone of a functioning economy. The business location Austria in the heart of Europe is to be specifically strengthened with a new logistics site strategy (LSS).
CHAMP-ION will begin its implementation phase in 2026 under the leadership of Silicon Austria Labs (SAL) as Europe's first pilot initiative for the industrial production of ion trap chips.
The decision to focus on selected key technologies and areas of strength also sends a clear signal to researchers and companies, providing planning and investment security. By focusing on key technologies and areas of strength, support is being provided in a targeted manner to those areas in which Austria is already a world leader or has the potential to become one.
In September 2025, ÖBB celebrated a new record: 760 new apprentices, 25 percent of whom were female, began their apprenticeships with the federal railways. That was 100 more than originally planned and than had been usual in previous years. Roman Hebenstreit, Chairman of the Group Works Council, presented the figures.
The United Nations (UN) officially launched the Decade for Sustainable Transport (2026–2035) in New York. The aim of the UN initiative within the framework of the 2030 Agenda is to promote sustainable, affordable and climate-friendly mobility worldwide.
Federal Minister Peter Hanke responds to the current balance of road fatalities in 2025. With a comprehensive collection amendment, technological innovations and a clear "Vision Zero" for children, the BMIMI is focusing on targeted measures to make the mobility of the future safe and reliable.
The year 2025 marks a historic milestone for Austrian aviation. Having surpassed the 32-million passenger mark, Vienna Airport records the most successful year in its history. Concurrently, the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI) has greatly expanded international air transport relations, strengthening Austria's role as a competitive hub in the heart of Europe.
The AI Factory Austria AI:AT is aiding 'Another Earth', another innovative Austrian deep-tech start-up, in accessing European high-performance computing systems (HPC). The company is developing AI-powered synthetic Earth observation models and is now training them on EuroHPC systems. This demonstrates once again that the AI Factory Austria enables companies to already access Europe's most potent computing infrastructures in a structured, efficient, and supported manner.
In the global race for quantum technologies, Austria holds a strong position. This is confirmed by a recent study from the European Patent Office (EPO) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The analysis of more than 31,700 patent families worldwide showcases the domestic innovation potential in this field of the future, marking Austria as one of 18 OECD countries with a comprehensive national quantum strategy.
The announced course change by the EU Commission regarding the planned abolition of combustion engines from 2035 brings Austria's Minister of Mobility Peter Hanke to the fore. The future of engines clearly lies with e-mobility. According to Hanke, the target year 2035 is correct, and any necessary adjustments must be based on clear goals and guidelines in line with the EU's climate policy commitments. It's important not to further unsettle people and the automobile industry. Concrete conditions are needed on the way to the mobility transition.
It was only in October 2025 that the Ministry of Mobility announced the extension of grants for single-track e-vehicles. Initially, 1.5 million euros were made available via the Climate and Energy Fund. Just a few weeks later, the fund is exhausted: 690 two-wheelers have been applied for, with an additional 620 registrations pending. To enable as many private individuals as possible to switch to emissions-free mobility, funds will now be increased by half a million euros. E-mopeds of classes L1 and L3 are supported.
The head of the Air Group in the Austrian Civil Aviation Authority at the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI), Karin Puleo-Leodolter, has been elected President of the Provisional Council of the European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation (EUROCONTROL). A historic step: For the first time since Austria joined EUROCONTROL in 1993, Austria takes the leadership of this central governing body – and for the first time in its history, the Provisional Council is led by a woman.
It starts in Linz – also for Europe's chip future. With the new Design Enablement Team (DET) CHIPSIDEA, Silicon Austria Labs is opening up access to state-of-the-art semiconductor development for SMEs, start-ups and research institutions. In the entire EU there are only nine of these DETs – and Silicon Austria Labs (SAL) assumes a key role in the framework of the EU Chips Act by leading one of these DETs.
In mid-October, the federal government announced a StVO collective amendment proposal. On Friday, the review period ended. A total of 94 statements were received. The coalition will use this time to carefully review all suggestions. The aim remains to amend the road traffic regulations in Austria to promote traffic safety and quality of life.
The A 10 Tauern motorway is one of the busiest travel routes in Austria. It is well known that existing capacity is insufficient during the travel weekends from May to September. This results in traffic jams with hours of delays and inconvenience for local residents due to the supposedly time-saving diversion of many drivers onto regional and municipal roads – usually on the recommendation of their satnavs.
On Wednesday, 19 November 2025, Innsbruck will become a meeting point for representatives from 47 Austrian pioneering cities. At the annual conference of the 'Climate Neutral City' mission, one question takes centre stage: How can we jointly shape our cities to be climate-neutral?
On Monday, 17 November, Mobility Minister Peter Hanke together with the chairman of the WKO sporting goods trade Michael Nendwich and woom CEO Bernd Hake honoured the national winners of "Österreich radelt" 2025 in the banquet hall of the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure. "Cycling – even with e-bikes – reduces the risk of heart attacks by up to 40 percent," outlined Federal Minister Hanke the immense health potential* of campaigns like "Österreich radelt".
Serial renovation is considered a forward-looking renovation method due to its significantly accelerated implementation time and sustainable energy cost savings, and is therefore attracting a great deal of attention from experts and the housing industry.
Economic researchers see locational advantages thanks to future-proof infrastructure. Gap-closing projects S1 and A5 to be included in ASFINAG construction program, S10 and S36 to be continued.
On 17 November 2025, Linz is all about chips: At the “EU Chips Access & Innovation Workshop,” all relevant players from the fields of chips, quantum, and photonics will gather at the LIT Open Innovation Center. The main aim is to strengthen cooperation along the entire value chain.
Following the recent approval of Chinese CRRC trains for Austria, Minister for Mobility Peter Hanke warns of the loss of domestic value creation and dependency on third countries. The Chinese double-decker trains, which are to be used on the Westbahn route Vienna – Salzburg, pose a serious threat to the domestic railway industry.
Bridges and tunnels, dams and tracks – they form the backbone of mobility in Austria. Much of this infrastructure was built during the construction boom of the 1960s and 1970s and is now approaching the end of its calculated lifespan or is on the brink of a comprehensive maintenance cycle.
As part of "eMove Austria", the Ministry of Mobility (BMIMI) has recently launched the funding call for the expansion of E-charging infrastructure in both private and commercial sectors, as well as for the transition to single-track electric vehicles. Nearly 30 million euros are available for this purpose this year.
During a press conference, Mobility Minister Peter Hanke today presented the review draft of the planned omnibus amendment to the Highway Code (StVO), along with the transport spokespeople Joachim Schnabel (ÖVP), Wolfgang Moitzi (SPÖ), and Dominik Oberhofer (NEOS), as well as changes to the Motor Vehicles Act (KFG) and Driving Licence Act (FSG).
The federal government has decided in today's Council of Ministers on the already announced truck toll package and the switch to the digital vignette from 2027 onwards.
Minister Peter Hanke and Patent Office President Stefan Harasek presented awards for the best patent, the most creative brand, and the promotion of women in innovation.
Federal Minister Peter Hanke and the province of Styria agree on next steps to expand the capacity of the A9 Pyhrn motorway.
Filling the gap in the regional ring relieves the population — Smart traffic control shifts HGV transit traffic from the Südosttangente out of the city — Impulse for the Vienna-Lower Austria region to secure prosperity
Eleven klimaaktiv mobil partnerships honoured at the 1st Austrian Pedestrian Summit in Graz – Pedestrian traffic as a key for healthy, safe and liveable communities
EU Transport and Tourism Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas and Mobility Minister Peter Hanke made a strong statement for climate-friendly mobility. As part of the European Mobility Week (EMW), they made it clear that sustainable mobility is a central task for the entire European Union and Austria - affordable, inclusive, and accessible to everyone.
Today's ÖBB announcement to raise ticket prices by more than four percent has been firmly rejected by Minister of Mobility Peter Hanke. The aim of the federal government is to curb inflation.
Children from Southern Burgenland secured the summer victory in the Austria-wide Climate Miles campaign by making their way to school in a climate-friendly manner.
The funding is aimed at small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have completed a successful FFG project in the last twelve months and now want to bring the finished prototype to the market.
Starting today, representatives from science, research, politics, as well as companies and investors will discuss the central importance of research, technology, and innovation for the competitiveness of Austria and Europe during the "Technology Talks Austria."
Key points: Greater cost transparency, one-time suspension of HGV toll valorisation for infrastructure component, and improved planning reliability when switching to electric lorries
After an intensive selection process, the 14 Austrian participants in the "Astronaut for a Day" initiative, jointly conducted for the first time by Austria, Luxembourg, and Estonia, have been decided. Originally, 13 slots were planned, but due to the high quality of the applications, 14 participants were ultimately selected. The last spot was drawn from the original five reserve candidates. Seven girls and seven boys, aged between 15 and 18, will have the unique opportunity to experience weightlessness on a parabolic flight on 15 October 2025. The group will be supplemented by four reserve astronauts: three girls and one boy.
Mobility Minister Peter Hanke is expanding his advisory circle to include Gerald Klug, the CEO of Graz-Köflacher Bahn and Busbetrieb GmbH (GKB). Klug will support the Ministry of Mobility in future as a special advisor for cross-border railway matters. This area is increasingly gaining importance due to the significance of international passenger and freight transport.
The AI-Mobile Austria brings Artificial Intelligence (AI) where it creates value: directly into the industry. In Austria's first mobile AI studio, real applications demonstrate how AI is already supporting quality assurance, production planning, document analysis, logistics, and occupational safety – practical, dialogue-oriented, and accessible.
The new call for proposals Talente regional — Children, Companies and the World of Research will begin next week. The initiative from the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI) aims to ignite a passion for applied research among children and young people at an early age. This serves as a long-term strategy to counteract the shortage of skilled workers in Austria through practical, regional educational offerings in the fields of research, technology and innovation (RTI). The call for proposals is managed by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency FFG. A total of nearly 3 million Euros is available for the initiative, with a maximum funding amount of 130,000 Euros per project.
In July, Mobility Minister Peter Hanke presented the new programme “eMove Austria” and outlined the future of e-mobility in Austria. A flagship project is the sightseeing provider Big Bus Vienna, where the transition has already begun. Ten e-double-decker buses are already in daily operation there, and by the end of 2025 the entire fleet will be expanded to 16 vehicles. The transition will save more than 4,000 tonnes of CO₂ over the next five years. The project “BigBus goes electric” was funded by the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) with approximately 1.2 million euros from the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI), financed by the European Union through NextGenerationEU.
Semiconductor and quantum technologies are among the most important technologies of our time, offering enormous growth opportunities for the Austrian economy. The European Union has also recognized their importance, and is placing a conscious emphasis on further developing these key technologies.
Strengthening innovation, securing the location – these are the two major goals of the research initiative “Transformation of Industry”.
In the coming months, a joint basis for the future organisation and financing of Upper Austria's regional railways will be developed.
From Bregenz to Eisenstadt: All of Austria is on the move – on foot. Under the motto “Österreich zu Fuß” (Austria on Foot) the entire country is committed to promoting walking as a healthy, socially equitable, and environmentally friendly form of mobility for the future. With the recently adopted Walking Master Plan of the city of Linz, now almost all nine provincial capitals are implementing concrete measures to strengthen pedestrian traffic.
With the realignment of the 'Frontrunner' initiative, the Federal Ministry for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI) and the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, Energy and Tourism (BMWET) are launching another impulse to strengthen Austria's innovation and industrial location. From now on, technology-oriented companies will be supported through a uniform funding scheme that specifically enables contributions to digital and sustainable transformation.
Austria ranks 8th in the European Innovation Scoreboard (EIS) published today. As this innovation ranking is being published this year with a revised methodology, this position is only comparable with that of previous years to a very limited extent. The ranking is headed by the group of ‘Innovation Leaders’ with Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands and Finland. This is followed by the group of ‘Strong Innovators’ with Ireland, Belgium, Luxembourg, Austria, Germany, France and Estonia.
With the "Connecting Europe Facility – Transport" programme, 74.4 million euros are being channelled directly into the domestic rail network. Hanke sees this as a "strong signal for sustainable mobility."
Especially in times of global upheaval, a fundamental industrial policy orientation is needed. In developing the industrial strategy, the federal government has precisely this in mind: strategic guidelines for Austria's location policy, which will give companies planning security and prepare the ground for a competitive, innovative and resilient industrial location in 2035.
The Republic of Austria – represented by Mobility Minister Peter Hanke – is handing over two special trains to the Ukrainian state railway company Ukrsalisnyzja (UZ) as a sign of the cooperation and long-standing partnership. Last Wednesday, the vehicles were handed over to the Ukrainian Ambassador to Austria, H.E. Vasyl Khymynets.
Against the backdrop of budgetary consolidation, the federal government and ÖBB have announced discussions with the state of Upper Austria regarding the future operation of the Almtalbahn, Hausruckbahn, and the northern part of the Mühlkreisbahn railway connections. At the heart of these discussions are questions of long-term financing and the adaptation of public transport services to passenger demand.