194 coaches counted on the 2nd Saturday – in 2019 there were still 302 – Mayor Preuner will set a further limit for 2023

The slot booking system for coaches set up by the Tourismus Salzburg Gesellschaft (TSG) works in the city of Salzburg. The second Saturday in Advent is traditionally the busiest day of the year. It was the same this year: Advent markets, Advent singing, Krampus run and shopping Saturday play together. Of course, most of the visitors to the old town traveled individually by bus, train or car. A total of “only” 194 coaches were registered. In 2019 there were still 302, it was said in a balance sheet discussion with Mayor Harald Preuner (ÖVP) on Wednesday, December 7th, 2022.

On the second Saturday in Advent, December 3, 2022, 54 coaches were recorded at the Paris-Lodron-Straße terminal, and 140 at the Nonntal terminal – a total of 194. On the same day in 2019, 123 coaches were counted in Paris-Lodron-Straße and 179 in Nonntal. That’s a total of 302, so 108 more.

Ten administrative penalties imposed

The police had 16 officers on duty this year. She states that the system WILL be well fulfilled. Ten administrative penalties were imposed because individual bus drivers did not follow the routes or the parking ban. There were no negative perceptions of the terminals. This is also confirmed by the security service.

At the Nonntal terminal, the city also has the emergency capacity of the bus lane, which can be opened if necessary, but this was necessary at all times. More than 90% of the coaches adhered to the shorter time windows. This is also confirmed by the Traffic and Road Law Office (MA 1/07). The bus parking spaces provided at the P&R-Süd are sufficient.

2023 further limitation desired

In 2018, the total number of coaches in the city was around 50,000. Then reduced measures were taken. In 2019, there were around 38,000 coaches in the year as a whole. Based on this, it is to be reduced again in 2023. TSG will consider this further. This year, including December, there are likely to be around 11,200 coaches in the city of Salzburg.

Tourism is slowly recovering

The new TSG boss Christine Schönhuber reported that tourism is slowly recovering. December will be the strongest month this year. 2023 will not be a “normal” year either, especially since the long-distance market is only recovering very slowly. The number of guests is currently mainly from Austria, Germany and Italy, to a certain extent also from individual travelers from the USA. A full recovery may not be expected until 2024, although the international uncertainties could mean the opposite.