VORARLBERG - Economy
Export oriented economy
Vorarlberg's economy was industrialized at a very early stage. It is dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises and is very much export-oriented. Its early industrialization, combined with its proximity to the old textile industry centres and its rich energy resources in the form of hydroelectric power is reflected in its strong secondary sector, which still today plays a leading role.
The enterprises in Voralberg are well distributed throughout the Land and their strong export bias provide a firm basis for flexible and successful economic activity in the most western of Austria's Länder.
The region's economy recorded a 3.8% nominal annual average growth rate between 1995 and 2000, putting it in line with the Austrian average.
Between 1995 and 2000, the number of persons employed rose by 5%, the fourth best performance behind Nierderösterreich, Steiermark and Salzburg.
Vorarlberg's share of total Austrian expenditure on research and experimental development in 1998 was 2.2% or ECU 75 million. Owing to the complete absence of university R&D establishments in the Bundesland, industry's 96.0% share of the region's R&D expenditure was the highest of all the Austrian Lander and the State was responsible for 4.0%.
Extremely important secondary sector
The characteristic features of the Vorarlberg economy are its disproportionately large production sector by Austrian standards; the relatively insignificant role to which difficult topography and early industrialization have relegated agricultural and forestry; and a service sector largely dominated by tourism.
In 2000, agriculture and forestry accounted for 0.9% of the region's value-added and 1.7% of total Austrian gross value added in this field.
The secondary sector underwent radical restructuring and upheavals as long ago as the 1950s, when textiles, which had hitherto been its flagship industry, gave way to the electrical, metalworking, mechanical engineering and food industries. Although, as in most other economically-developed countries, the 1970s and 1980s saw the focus move from the secondary to the tertiary sector, the former still retains its extremely important position in Vorarlberg. In 2000, its share of the region's value-added was 39.7%, well up on the national average of 31.1%.
Two sectors which accounted for strikingly high proportions of value-added were the energy and water supplies (2,8% in 2000, the third-highest in Austria), and the textile industry, which has a long tradition in the region reflected in figures such as about 5% of Vorarlberg's value-added production
Although still very much under-represented in Austrian terms, the service sector recorded an nominal annual average growth rate of 2.9% between 1995 and 2000. Vorarlberg's tourist industry, as measured by the number of overnight stays, is the fifth largest in Austria. In 2002, 7.9 Million overnight stays were counted, which is over the value of Vienna.
Transport
The transport network in Voralberg consists of 63 km of motorways and 108 km of railway lines (figure from 1997). Vorarlberg has the least developed rail network in the whole Austria. The number of vehicles (all types except trailers and motorcycles) was 193 500, including 87% of private cars. In 2001, there were 33 registered deaths caused by road accidents, 32% less than in 1990.
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