Wiener Linien CONTINUES TO BE SUCCESSFUL

2008 was a particularly successful year for Wiener Linien, in which we transported more than 803 million passengers – a new record. A smoothly operating public transport network helps improve urban environmental standards and quality of life, while also making the city even more attractive as a hub for competitive economic activity. Wiener Linien is dedicated to expanding its network, investing considerable amounts of time and money in improving standards of quality along the way. In 2008 alone, Wiener Linien invested a sum of almost EUR 412 million. Around EUR 205 million of this was for the underground expansion plan. EUR 207 million was invested in new vehicles for the underground, bus and tram lines, as well as in additional measures to improve quality such as expanding the passenger information system.

2.2 MILLION PASSENGERS EVERY DAY

On any given day in 2008, an average of around 2.2 million journeys was made on our five underground, 28 tram and 84 bus lines. Our 117 lines currently extend around 934 km, serving over 4,400 stops and stations. Without Wiener Linien, the city would have to bear the brunt of an extra 1.5 million car journeys every day. In order to overcome this additional burden, it would be necessary to build another ten Südosttangenten, Vienna’s busiest motorway which runs through the south-eastern part of the city.

LEAVING THE CAR AT HOME

Vienna is one of only a handful of cities around the world in which both passenger numbers and the market share of public transport have progressively risen in recent years. Moreover, Vienna is the only large city in Europe in which this rise in the use of public transport is on the back of an even more significant drop in the share of journeys being made by car. While in 1993 only 29% of all journeys were made on public transport and 40% by car, today, public transport in Vienna can claim a market share of 35%, enjoying a clear advantage over the car, which has a share of 32%.

THE ERNST HAPPEL STADIUM ON THE UNDERGROUND NETWORK

Since 10 May 2008, Vienna’s population has been able to travel on the U2 underground line past the former final stop, Schottenring, to the Ernst Happel Stadium via Praterstern and the exhibition centre. Over 90,000 people live in the catchment area of the U2 line extension to the stadium. This means that key infrastructure facilities such as Vienna’s exhibition centre (Wiener Messe) or the future site of the Vienna University of Economics and Business Administration now enjoy optimum access.

In inaugurating the new U2 line extension from the Schottenring to Stadion stations, a key part of the third expansion phase of Vienna’s underground network has been completed. It doesn’t stop here – soon the Prater, exhibition centre, Ernst Happel Stadium, Lobau and the Danube Hospital (Donauspital) will all be served by one line.

TO ASPERN WITH THE U2 IN 2010

At the end of September 2006, Wiener Linien began work on extending the U2 over the Danube to the 22^nd District as far as Aspernstrasse. The new section running from Stadion station over the Danube to Aspernstrasse comprises six stations and is around five kilometres in length. This section of line is due to be completed in October 2010, providing a link to the new ÖBB railway station Stadlau and to the Danube Hospital.