The closure of the gap in the Baltic-Adriatic railway axis between Carinthia and Styria through the Koralm Tunnel connects Klagenfurt and Graz directly for the first time. The stop in St. Paul brings the previously inconspicuous, rural community on the Carinthian side of the tunnel closer to the two provincial capitals. The Koralm Railway thus opens up potential not only for the urban area, but for the entire peri-urban area along the axis. The station, which is located away from the town centre, poses a number of challenges, particularly with regard to urban sprawl. The pressure of urbanisation and the demand for affordable housing, combined with the need to preserve valuable agricultural land, present the municipality and the surrounding area with the task of managing balanced urban development and preserving the rural character of the area.
To kick off the Bachelor's project P2 (Spatial Development Planning), an excursion to the market town of St. Paul im Lavanttal in Carinthia took place from 7 to 10 October. In addition to a presentation of the municipality by the mayor, the excursion included a discussion round with relevant political decision-makers and a guided tour of St. Paul's Abbey and the leading company NCA Stahlbau. Accompanied by specialist lectures, the time on site was also used for observation, research and questioning, so that the groups could start working on their projects with many impressions. Taking into account the current requirements in the planning discourse, the students are now further developing their ideas and approaches in order to formulate a local development strategy for the community. The results will be presented in January 2026 at both the TU Wien and the local community.
We would like to express our gratitude for the warm welcome we received from Mayor Stefan Salzmann and Director of Economic Affairs Johann Steiner (Stift St. Paul), as well as for the valuable insights into regional, climate and energy management provided by Johannes Gastrager and Stephan Stückler.
The PR Spatial Development Planning, opens an external URL in a new window is supervised by Andreas Voigt, Werner Tschirk, Helena Linzer (ifoer), Bardo Hörl (move), Johann Bröthaler, Antonia Schneider (ifip) and Amila Smajlović-Pleschberger (Office of the Carinthian Provincial Government).