Public transport in Vienna

12/06/2024

Your Vienna City Card also gives you unlimited use of all public transport operated by Wiener Linien for 24, 48, 72 hours or 7 days! Discover the most beautiful corners of Vienna easily by metro, tram, S-Bahn or bus.

Passagiere an Wiener U-Bahn Gleis warten auf einfahrende U3 — © Wien Tourismus/Julius Hirtzberger

The Vienna public transport network

Your Vienna City Card ticket can be used on all public transport operated by Wiener Linien within the Vienna core zone (including Nightline buses). Please make sure that you have validated your ticket before your first journey. Without a validation stamp, your ticket is invalid! Stamp your ticket at a Wiener Linien ticket validator at the start of your first journey and you can discover Vienna on your own. No further validation is necessary for print@home tickets or app tickets.

The Vienna Metro is open during the week from around 5 a.m. until shortly after midnight. At weekends and on public holidays, however, the metro can be used continuously from midnight to midnight. Trams and buses, on the other hand, stop running earlier. Further information about Wiener Linien and the individual timetables can be found at www.wienerlinien.at.

Public transport in Vienna

With a total of 5 metro lines, 28 tram lines and 131 bus routes, Vienna's public transport network is safe, fast and well-developed. Vienna's public transport system is particularly impressive due to its short intervals, perfect connections and sustainability. Every day, around 2 million passengers use Wiener Linien public transport to get to their destination. On average, public transport covers around 211,000 kilometers every day. Wiener Linien now operates the largest regional transport network in Austria, comprising 83 kilometers of subway lines and 880 kilometers of bus routes.

However, it is the tram that plays a key role in Vienna's public transport system: Today, Vienna has one of the oldest, densest and longest tram networks in the world. The beginnings of the tram even go back to the 19th century, with the first horse-drawn tram dating back to the 1840s. In 1978, the first section of the metro network was finally opened with the U1 between Reumannplatz and Karlsplatz.

Mann und Frau gehen nach dem Aussteigen umschlungen an einem Wiener U-Bahn Gleis entlang — © Wien Tourismus/Paul Bauer

The Vienna metro network

The metro network in Vienna consists of a total of 5 different color-coded metro lines: U1, U2, U3, U4 and U6. The metros run daily at short intervals for passengers and can be used continuously from midnight to midnight on weekends and public holidays. It is also interesting to note that not a single metro line runs completely underground, only 50.3% in total. The metro network is currently being extended by the U5 line, which will run between the Karlsplatz and Hernals stops in future. From 2026, the new U5 will be the first fully automated metro in Austria.

Wiener Straßenbahn 71 hält vor der Haltestelle Parlament — © Wien Tourismus/Paul Bauer

The Vienna tram network

A total of around 500 tram carriages are available to passengers on 29 different lines. The history of the tram, which the Viennese also like to call the “Bim”, goes back to the 19th century. The first horse-drawn trams were already in operation in the 1840s, and from 1865 onwards, more and more horse-drawn trams were on the road, forming the basis of today's tram network. The first steam trams were in operation in Vienna from 1883 and the first electric trams were finally introduced in 1897. The most modern tram currently operated by Wiener Linien is the “Flexity”, which is one of the lowest in the world with a boarding height of 215 millimetres.

Mann und Frau steigen Arm in Arm aus Wiener Ubahnstation aus — © Wien Tourismus/Paul Bauer

Bus lines and Nightlines

Passengers can choose from 131 different bus routes, and Wiener Linien operates around 400 buses in total. The bus numbering always consists of a number and the letter A or B. The Wiener Linien bus network covers a total of 880 kilometers, which means that bus lines cover the most kilometers, closely followed by trams and metros. In the inner city, there are also “City Buses” specially developed for the narrow streets, which enable rapid progress. In addition to the regular bus lines, passengers can also use the night lines, which run every 30 minutes between 0:00 and 05:00, although the running times vary depending on the night line.

Mann und Frau lehnen lächelnd an Geländer mit Blick auf eine U-Bahn Station und Gleise — © Wien Tourismus/Paul Bauer

The Vienna S-Bahn

There are 9 different S-Bahn lines in Vienna, which provide a direct connection between the capital and Burgenland and Lower Austria. Between the Floridsdorf and Meidling stops is the so-called S-Bahn trunk line, on this 14 kilometer long route several lines intersect, so intervals of 3 to 5 minutes can be achieved. All S-Bahn lines in the Vienna city area can also be used with the Wiener Linien annual ticket and all other VOR (Verkehrsverbund Ost-Region) tickets for the Vienna core zone.