Anything is easier said than done, and Franz does not ignore the limits of productivity. In this era, the railway construction technology has matured, but the construction efficiency is still not high.

Building 38,000 kilometers of railways in 20 years, or an average of 1,900 kilometers per year, was undoubtedly challenging in those days.

Funding is also a problem, 20 million dong to build 1,900 kilometers of railways, the average budget is only more than 10,000 dong per kilometer, in the case of labor is basically free, the construction in the plain area may be barely enough. (Only the project cost is calculated, and the compensation for demolition and relocation is not considered, and the geological conditions are not considered.) ）

In fact, the Austrian Empire was not a plain country, and there were many complex terrains, which seriously restricted the construction of railways.

These limitations of the natural environment can be overcome, the big deal is a detour, anyway, in this era of Austrian railway construction, it is impossible to dig a tunnel several kilometers long, or even tens of kilometers long.

When encountering special terrain, whether it is a detour or facing difficulties, this means a significant increase in cost.

No one can answer the question of how much it will cost in the end, and perhaps the engineers will be able to give a preliminary budget when the field exploration is complete.

The government's fiscal revenue is limited, and it is impossible to invest all of it in railway construction. In Franz's view, it is better to reduce the annual cost of railway construction to less than 5 percent of the fiscal revenue.

The shortfall can only be made up by private capital, and in short, it is to find a way to get the aristocracy to pay for the construction of the railway.

This is a special situation in Austria, where the capitalist economy has developed, but most of the wealth of society is still in the hands of the aristocracy.

Of course, the current Austrian central government also has a lot of wealth in its hands, which is mainly manifested in land, forests, real estate, state-owned enterprises, and in fact, the cash obtained by stealing the house has been almost spent at this time, leaving less than 100 million guilders.

Real estate is already being sold, and the income from the land is mainly leased to farmers, and the government can be provided with Rp 150 million per year for the next few decades by collecting rents and ransoms.

Not all of this money went to the government, and there was also land compensation paid to the nobility, and Franz was reputable, and this money had to be given.

Even if it is divided into twenty years, or even forty years, their money must be paid off.

There was no way, these nobles were too cooperative, and the Austrian government could not find an excuse to pay the bills.

Coupled with the influence of personal connections, in order not to cause unrest in the country, the Austrian government now has to pay 100 million dong in compensation every year.

This is determined by the national conditions, and the government dominated by the aristocratic class naturally has to consider the interests of this interest group. Franz still knows what to do and what not to do.

Such a large sum of money has gone into the pockets of the nobles, and if it is not taken out and invested, it is obviously a waste. Moreover, the compensation is not permanent, and there will be no more after the payment.

As a good emperor, it is natural to think about their future life for them. How risky it is to invest in other projects, if one is not good, you will lose all your money.

It is much safer to invest in railways, as long as there is no gold running on the train?

At the cabinet meeting, Franz asked with some hesitation: "Do you think it is more suitable for us to issue railway bonds, or to form a railway company to sell shares, or simply authorize the capitalists to build a certain line by themselves?" ”

Chancellor of the Exchequer Karl hurriedly said: "Your Majesty, it is not advisable to issue railway bonds, and railway investment is a long-term investment, and there will be no return for several years.

Considering the actual situation, many railway lines have been in a state of loss for more than ten years, and for such a long time, huge debts need to be borne by the government, and it is easy to drag down the finances.

Besides, if we have so many railways in our hands and run them by the government, the management cost is too high, so it is better to leave them to the management of the enterprises, and we will be responsible for collecting taxes. ”

Is it profitable to invest in railways?

There is no doubt about it.

However, the prerequisite is to invest in railways in prosperous commercial areas, and it is clear that the Austrian railway network takes into account not only economic but also political and military considerations.

Once this railway network was built, all the major cities in Austria were connected in series, and even the most remote province of Dalmatia was planned for a railway.

This means that many sections of the railway are operating at a loss. Of course, Austria is not a vast country, the natural conditions are also superior, there are no too remote areas, as long as the economy develops, the prospects of these railways are considerable. (698,700 sq km)

It's okay for the government to be responsible for building the railway, so that the quality can be guaranteed, but it can't be for the government to be responsible for operating the railway.

In terms of cost savings, enterprises are definitely doing better than government agencies, and private enterprises are doing better than state-owned enterprises.

There is no way, Austria has the "Labor Protection Act", and the capitalists try to avoid it and reduce their spending as much as possible, but absolutely no one in the government dares not to enforce it.

"Your Majesty, it is not a big problem to issue shares in a company, but according to the Austrian Securities Act, it is not possible to go public until the construction of the railway has begun.

We still need to advance the initial funds, otherwise we will invest in the land as shares, look for some social shareholders to contribute, and then go public to raise funds after the start of construction? Archduke Louis proposed

Austria is conservative, but it's no secret that it makes money by investing in railways. There are several sections of railways that have been built in China, and I have not heard of anyone who is losing money.

In this case, after the Austrian government adopted the railway as a national policy, even the conservative aristocracy was tempted.

After all, railways are not as good as other industries, and the risks are visible, as long as the route you choose is good, are you afraid that you won't be able to make money?

"Yes, but the proportion of investment should be restricted, and the total amount of capital contributed by all social shareholders shall not be less than 45 percent of the railway construction funds." Franz thought for a moment and said

Franz did not exclude the aristocracy from participating in making money, he originally wanted to pay for it, the premise was that he had to come up with real money, and if he wanted to empty gloves and white wolves, he couldn't.

With the emergence of joint-stock companies, it became more difficult for capitalists to enter the market. Franz just needed someone to pay for the railroad to be built, and he didn't care who paid for it.

In the end, the result of the negotiations was that the government came forward to set up five railway operating companies, which were to be responsible for the investment and construction of the five railway lines.

There is no doubt that this is just a pilot, if it succeeds, it will continue to be promoted, and if it fails, it will be played differently.

Investment and construction can give private capital, but the railway design work is still the responsibility of the Ministry of Railways, they must be built according to the drawings, and accept the supervision of the Ministry of Railways.

These five railway operating companies only share a part of the railway investment, and most of the selected sections are easy to build and can be profitable in a short time.

In fact, everyone understands that it is necessary to let those who invest first make money, and then bring more people to join the railway construction and speed up the pace of railway construction in Austria.

Franz has no moral purity, and he will naturally not refuse to use the interests of the railway to win over interest groups in exchange for a better advancement of this plan, and this is indispensable for the royal family.

Profitable businesses are rushed to do, and money-losing deals are not asked. If no one wants to do it, the government has to do it.

The government only has a certain stake in the construction of commercial railways, and the railways for political and military purposes can only be built by the Ministry of Railways itself.

Franz was a person who paid attention to his appearance, so he didn't get involved personally.

It is estimated that no one will believe this statement, the truth is that there is no money in hand, after all, the mine boss is more profitable than the iron boss, but the Habsburgs have investments.

Anyway, these railway companies will become listed companies, dig a pit for them casually, and as soon as the stock market crash comes, it will be cool, and he can still buy and buy.