Vienna’s central train station, hailed as its project of the century and – relatively speaking – the largest railway project of Austrian Railways (ÖBB), was formally inaugurated on 10 October.
Five years after Vienna’s former South Train Station was demolished, a new, more modern and streamlined station has been erected in its place on a smaller surface area.

Reduced travel times, together with more services, routes, efficient platform connections and bolder architecture, will make train journeys much more attractive.

Three main railway routes will run through the Austrian capital. Thus, Vienna and the east of Austria will be brought closer to the centre of Europe.
Several new routes will become operational, for example:

• Salzburg-Bratislava
• Linz Airport from Vienna
• Wiener Neustadt-Budapest
• Prague-St. Polten and
• Mödling-Tullnerfeld

The new barrier-free station is only three stops away on the underground from the centre of Vienna. Thanks to Vienna’s chief rail hub/Vienna Meidling, ÖBB’s main rail lines can be accessed from all underground lines or the S-Bahn in under 30 minutes.

The station will handle 145,000 passengers and over 1000 trains a day (serving 10 platforms) once fully operational.

In addition to 22 ticket machines, passengers will also be able to purchase tickets at the 14 counters in the modern travel centre. Wi-Fi is free in the station hall and on the platforms and from the timetable change on 14 December, will be freely available on all the platforms.
As of this date First-class and Business passengers will have access to a new ÖBB lounge to wait in a relaxed environment.

Vienna’s new central train station will only occupy an area of 50 hectares compared to the former Südbahnhof (South Train Station), which covered 109 hectares.
ÖBB has thus been able to restore valuable land to the city to enable growth in well-located areas. On the 59 hectares that have been returned, 5000 housing units have been built and 20,000 jobs have been created, as well as schools and kindergartens for 1200 children and seven hectares of public park, thus giving a new lease of life to the former railway lines.

UIC warmly congratulates Austrian Federal Railways ÖBB for this outstanding achievement.

(Source: ÖBB)