Ostbahn rail services restricted in Austria following overhead line damage

Train services on Austria’s Ostbahn remain restricted following significant damage to overhead lines near Götzendorf. Authorities believe the disruption was triggered by a squirrel coming into contact with a 15-kV high-voltage line, which caused an electrical short and a subsequent cable fire.

Repairs to the damaged cabling in the section between Gramatneusiedl and Bruck an der Leitha are expected to continue until Wednesday, with full operations anticipated to resume on Thursday.

While long-distance Railjet and RegioJet services are running according to schedule—making unscheduled stops at Bruck an der Leitha and Gramatneusiedl to maintain connections to Vienna and Bratislava—Eurocity connections are heavily impacted. Several Eurocity trains have been canceled, with only specific services (EC 343, D 347, EC 346, EC 462, and EC 463) remaining operational. In local transit, a replacement bus service has been established between Gramatneusiedl and Bruck an der Leitha to compensate for canceled trains.