Noah’s Train at the European Mobility Week

The European Mobility Week takes place from 16 to 22 September. ÖBB - Austria's largest climate protection company - is also part of the Europe-wide campaign. A special highlight is one of the Noah´s Train containers, the European Rail Freight Forward initiative, which will be on display throughout the week at the main entrance of the Main Station. Together with WWF Austria, this will set an example for climate protection and present the Rail Freight Forward Initiative. Photography expressly desired!

Importance of mobility for people and the environment

The European Mobility Week is an initiative of the European Commission which started in 1998 with the "Car Free Day" in France. Since 2002, it has offered the opportunity to carry out actions over several days or to set a different thematic focus on transport every day for a week. More than 500 municipalities and cities from all over Austria take part in the European Mobility Week every year.

Efficient, safe and environmentally friendly transport systems at attractive costs are indispensable for many areas of human coexistence and the economy. Rail freight transport makes a significant contribution to this. Nowadays, it is assumed that goods can be transported from A to B easily, quickly and efficiently. ÖBB is also an important lever in climate protection and, with its ambitious climate protection strategy, plays an important role in achieving the climate protection goals, as ÖBB is the country's largest climate protection company. As a founding member of the Rail Freight Forward Initiative, the Rail Cargo Group is also committed to European freight transport.

The European rail freight railways:

• cause 12 times less external costs for society than road transport such as emissions, congestion or accident costs
• have 6 times lower specific energy consumption
• are on the European average 9 times better in terms of CO2 emissions - the ÖBB freight transport by rail in Austria even causes 21 times less CO2 per tonne transported than the transport by truck due to electricity from renewable energy sources
• are 8 times better in terms of air pollution
• cause 85 times fewer road casualties
• are 5 times better in terms of noise exposure

Saving the climate – ÖBB and WWF make common cause

The World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF) is one of the largest nature and environmental organisations in the world.  It is no coincidence that the ÖBB Rail Cargo Group and the WWF Austria are doing business together. This is because rail is already a safer and more environmentally friendly mode of transport than trucks. With its climate protection strategy, ÖBB is showing targeted commitment. In addition, ÖBB relies 100% on renewable energies for traction power. And on the European initiative Rail Freight Forward, which with Noah's Train is intended to raise awareness for rail freight traffic. "Mobility is a basic human and economic need. ÖBB is the largest mobility provider in Austria and the top logistics provider in Europe. We must act now and move as many goods as possible from road to rail. This not only saves CO2 and protects the climate, but also reduces noise and reduces accidents," says RCG CEO Clemens Först.

WWF climate spokesman Karl Schellmann: "Shifting freight traffic to rail is long overdue. Currently, only one third of the transport is done by rail. However, 85 percent is possible in cross-border freight transport and 60 percent in intra-Austrian transport. The development of the rail infrastructure must be designed accordingly. In addition to a socio-ecological tax reform, a comprehensive turnaround in mobility is one of the most important levers in the fight against the climate crisis. Those who oversleep the railways will fall under the "fossil wheels".

This is exactly what European Mobility Week is all about: Anyone can be a climate ambassador: Simply take a picture in front of the Noah's Train container, post it on social media with the Hashtags #railfreightforward #noahstrain and thus be part of an active climate protection community.