Hungarian Commissioner for Fundamental Rights (Ombudsman) Ákos Kozma has asked his Austrian counterpart to find a solution acceptable to both Hungarians and Austrians concerning the use of a road linking Ágfalva in Hungary and Schattendorf (Somfalva) in Austria, the Ombudsman told MTI on Tuesday, 14 August.
Towards the end of June, the mayor of the Austrian settlement of Schattendorf made a surprising choice: he said the municipality would impose a toll for crossing the Schattendorf-Ágfalva border. The move blatantly disregards the principles of the Schengen Agreement and the unrestricted movement of workers within the European Union. Although it doesn’t technically constitute a border closure, it closely resembles one.
As of July, those crossing from the Hungarian side at Ágfalva are required to pay a fee upon entering Austria. The mayor’s rationale that Hungarian commuters contribute to numerous road accidents and create disruption for the residents of his town due to heavy traffic.
The introduction of a fee, apart from being evidently unwise, appears to lack a solid legal foundation. Even the Social Democratic mayor of the small town, Thomas Hoffmann, is probably aware that this decision will likely be deemed inconsistent with EU law sooner or later. Hoffmann, who was clearly aiming to score political points with Austrian constituents with the move, has asserted that the decision will undergo a thorough review.
Expectedly, the imposition of this measure has led to outrage among Ágfalva’s residents, prompting them to organise a protest at the Austrian border. The mayor of Ágfalva suggests that the solution to this issue might involve the establishment of new border crossings.
Hungarian Ombudsman Intervenes
Ombudsman Ákos Kozma has now intervened in the matter, by sending a letter to Gaby Schwarz, his Austrian counterpart, urging him to find a solution to the dispute.
The letter was dispatched after Hungarian citizens turned to the Commissioner for Fundamental Rights for a redress. As the Ombudsman’s Office stated, the complainants objected to the fact that the municipality of Schattendorf in Austria closed the road connecting the village with Ágfalva on the Hungarian side, a road built with co-financing from the European Union, on several instances, the first time in January 2023 during the morning and evening hours, thereby obstructing the commuting by car of Hungarian residents working in Austria, and then from 1 March 2023, when the road was completely closed, citing road construction works. Finally, as of 1 July 2023, the road is only allowed to be used based on request and separate consideration, and the use of the route is subject to the payment of a predetermined fee.
As measures that limit the entry of Hungarian citizens into Austria are likely in violation of the fundamental EU right of the free movement of people and workers, Ákos Kozma requested information from Gaby Schwarz on any investigation initiated by the Austrian Ombudsman’s Office into the measures implemented by the Schattendorf municipality. If such an investigation has not yet occurred, the Hungarian Commissioner for Fundamental Rights called on his counterpart to start an inquiry into the matter, the press release issued by the Hungarian Ombudsman’s Office said.
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