CER Austria Cargo Cleared to Run Trains, Germany and Serbia Next

A new operator has joined Austria’s rail freight map—and it didn’t arrive empty-handed. Backed by a decade of fleet upgrades and cross-border know-how, CER Cargo’s Vienna arm has secured the paperwork it needs to move from plans to independent operations.

According to railmarket.com, CER Austria Cargo GmbH received the country’s standardised safety certificate (SSC) on 1 October 2025, authorising the company to begin independent freight operations within Austria. The Vienna-based subsidiary of CER Cargo Holding can now organise and run its own services nationwide—expanding a network the group already runs across Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Croatia, and Romania. The holding said Austria is a key step in a wider push, with Germany and Serbia next in line for market entry.

The @EU_Commission has recognised the essential role rail will play in #EUdefence in its White Paper.

👉CER urges to prioritise investments in rail infrastructure and rolling stock
👉Defence must be bolstered by rail systems that can meet both civilian and military demands pic.twitter.com/Jw2XzedlX1

— CER🚆 #OnTrackForEurope (@CER_railways) March 20, 2025

Fleet and Corridors Already in Place

As reported by transportcorridors.com back in February 2025, CER had been modernising its traction for years, most recently accepting a new Transmontana locomotive into service at CER Hungary Zrt. exactly a decade after the model first joined its fleet. The 6,000 kW Transmontana—equipped with ETCS—has built a reputation for high productivity and competitive operating costs on core routes, including the Belgrade–Budapest corridor. The latest unit (610-105) is slated for work between Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia, with certification work underway to support the group’s expansion into Austria and Germany. The partnership with Softronic (Craiova) is central to adapting locomotives to European (and non-European) requirements, while CER says it is pursuing energy-saving technologies and low-emission freight as part of its sustainability goals.

The newly issued Austrian SSC is the trigger for commercial roll-out rather than a standalone milestone: it plugs into a fleet, routes, and customer base the group already runs in neighbouring states. That should shorten the ramp-up curve, with traction standardisation, ETCS-ready assets, and cross-border processes giving Austria a practical starting point.