as Schwarzenbach an der Pielach after it had been discontinued to Mariazell, but it was limited to wood carried in narrow-gauge wagons. On 31 December 1998, ÖBB ended transporter wagon service on the Valley Line and the remaining section of the branchline, thereby ending all freight service on the Mariazell Railway. Passenger traffic on the branch slowly diminished. The line from Wieselburg to Gresten was converted from narrow-gauge to standard gauge in 1998 due to extensive freight operations, discontinuing passenger operations. Before then, the standard-gauge goods wagons were loaded onto transporter wagons in Wieselburg for the trip along this stretch of line. In connection with this gauge conversion, passenger service on the line east of Wieselburg to Ruprechtshofen was discontinued in 2001, followed by the discontinuation of service between Mank and Ruprechtshofen in 2003. Service on the last section of the branch line, between Ober Grafendorf and Mank, ceased in 2010, when the line closed completely. As of about 2000, the ÖBB was considering selling or abandoning the main line between St. Pölten and Mariazell. In the autumn of 2003, a plan was drawn up to convert the line between St. Pölten and Kirchberg an der Pielach to standard gauge, as this stretch was considered important for commuters and school children. However neither plan was carried out, and the ÖBB continued to provide narrow gauge service on the main line up to the transfer of the line in 2010. Back to provincial ownership In 2010, the ÖBB transferred responsibility for the railway to the provincial government of Lower Austria. Operation became the responsibility of NÖVOG, which is owned by the provincial government. As part of this transfer, NÖVOG announced plans to modernise the line at a total cost of €117m, including €65m on new rolling stock, €20m on a new depot, €20m on infrastructure, €7.5m on the overhead electrical supply and €4.5m on signalling. In December 2010, an order was placed for nine low-floor Himmelstreppe EMUs to be built by Stadler Rail. In order accommodate the new trains and provide a new operating centre for NÖVOG, a new station with depot and workshop was built at Laubenbachmühle between 2011 and 2013. In December 2012 the first of the new units was shown to the public at Laubenbachmühle depot. The final unit was delivered in January 2014, allowing the full normal service of the line to be operated with such trains.