WESTbahn runs on Südbahn
posted on 1st Mar 2026 10:08
On 1 March 2026, WESTbahn started operating on the Wien - Graz - Klagenfurt - Villach route, working for the first time on the Südbahn. For this purpose, the operator ordered three SMILE EMUs with a top speed of 250 km/h from Stadler, which will be used the new Koralmbahn high-speed line.
Unit 501 042 (whose inv. number follows the SBB batch) was the first to be delivered. So far, three pairs of services are running on the route, the target is five pairs, which is to be gradually achieved by 26 March 2026.
WESTbahn currently has units 501 042 and 043 at disposal. The third one, 501 044, is at present commissioned in IBS Erlen and will arrive in Austria in mid-March. The operator has told us that a total of 100 employees are planned for operation on the Südbahn, of which around 40 are drivers (WESTbahn now has a total of around 500 employees).
Given the various information circulating on the internet, we asked WESTbahn whether it is true that there are plans to change the seating arrangement in the SMILE units in the future, as it is the same as in the SBB‘s Class RABe 501 Girunos. WESTbahn replied that this is the final seating configuration and it will no change in the future.
