City railway arches (Vienna)

Typical use of an arch, in this case the vault number 96, which used to be used by a craftsman

Contemporary overview of the arches including district allocation in Adolph Lehmann 's general apartment indicator from 1913

Sheet number 6 from the kunstBOGEN gallery at Gumpendorfer Gürtel

Typical view and sections of a main railway viaduct , recognizable by the track spacing of 4.00 meters

McDonald's manages the sheets 82A and 83 to 87, wherein the visible in the foreground sheet 82A as a drive-in is used

Interior view of the restaurant Brandauer's beer arches in the vaults 204–216

Exterior view of the restaurant Brandauers Bierbögen , the vaults there are glazed and built over

Cross cuts between adjacent arches increase usability

Construction of the viaduct arches on the belt, the later crosscuts clearly visible

The waistline shortly after it opened in 1898, some shops in the arches are still in the works

Overgrown arches on the Döblinger Gürtel

The open vault 77 is a pedestrian passage

Vault 193 serves as a passage for the tram

Renovation of the single arch 297 in Hernals, 2011

Numbering of an arch on the connecting track

The light rail arches in Vienna are historical traffic structures that originate from the former Viennese steam light rail or the Viennese electric light rail that emerged from it and are now part of the Vienna S-Bahn or the Vienna U-Bahn . In 2019, a total of 458 of these viaduct arches still exist , 54 of them from 1859, 342 from 1898, 54 from 1901 and eight replicas from 1989. Most of the vaults or arcades - together with the station buildings - were designed by Art Nouveau architects Otto Wagner designed as a by-product of the Stadtbahn and are listed . That is why they are sometimes also called Otto Wagner bows . Since most of Vienna's Stadtbahnbögen can be found in the course of the former Stadtbahn belt line , i.e. along the western belt , other alternative names are belt arches and belt viaduct . The older arches on the connecting cableway, however, go back to the architect Carl Ritter von Ghega .

The belt line is currently used by the U-Bahn line 6 , while the Obere Wientallinie by the U-Bahn line 4 , the suburban line by the S-Bahn line 45 and the connecting line, today's main line , by various S-Bahn -Lines is served. Thus, a large part of the arches still serves their original purpose as a traffic structure. In contrast, the Nussdorfer Straße - Heiligenstadt section of the belt line has been closed since 1996 and a large part of the connecting arc between the belt line and the Danube Canal line has been closed since 1991. On these two sections, a total of 121 arcs are now without rail traffic.

description

The base of the viaduct is similar to the 1882 finished Berliner Stadtbahnbögen , in brick performed while the foundations of sand breakage from the Wiener forest was used. The visible surfaces clad with facing bricks were enlivened by individual decorations in stone . This includes partly medium-hard sand-lime bricks from the Leithagebirge and partly Zogelsdorfer Stein . The viaduct arches, which are arched on average with quarter pillars, are waterproofed with an eight centimeter thick concrete layer and a layer of two centimeters natural asphalt on top. The slope is based on the vaulted pillars, in which extendable pipes ensure the drainage of the water. The masonry has a stone cornice at the top , in which the iron, so-called light rail railings, interrupted by small pillars above the abutments, are cast. The pillars also housed the chimneys for the shops in the viaduct arches.

However, the execution of the routes at high altitude varies depending on the distance from the city center. The arches of the belt line consist of brickwork , while those of the peripheral suburb line have a less filigree ashlar masonry .

The arches are partially clad with natural stone masonry, with smooth and rusticated (rough) surfaces alternating like stripes, sometimes stone on brick layers. The outer skin of the buildings usually consists of a layer of precisely bricked, double- grouted - originally light yellow - Bohemian clinker bricks , with a joint width of eight millimeters. Otto Wagner had designed various facades to close the vaults. He always subdivided the facade surface with a horizontal line into an arched field and a rectangle below. The other divisions result from the arc size, which changes with the undulating terrain of the belt. Adjacent arches are partially connected to one another by 3.00 meter wide crosscuts , these increase usability.

The exposed bricks of the viaducts stand in stark contrast to the white plaster of the stations; apart from the tram, Wagner did not plan or build any brick facades. However, two studies by Wagner at the beginning of his design work for the Stadtbahn show arches with plastered facades like those of the stations.

numbering

The historical sheets are numbered consecutively with Arabic numbers , with gaps and double numbering and some of the sheets have no number. Additional letters are also occasionally used. The replicas, in turn, are differentiated using Roman numerals . The Wiener Linien mark their vaults with oval number plates with black writing on a white background, while the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) use rectangular blue plates with white writing. The designation "Stadtbahnbogen + number + postcode + city" partially replaces the regular postal address or building address , that is, street and house number are omitted. However, for better orientation, the neighboring street is usually also indicated.

use

The light rail arches partially serve as usable area, the builders of the light rail have considered the rooms in the viaduct arches as rentable property from the start. This considerably mitigates the barrier-like character of a brick elevated railway line in the middle of the city area, although Otto Wagner himself would have preferred to leave the arches open in terms of urban design.

In the light rail arches, businesses with low environmental impact, such as a cabinet-making workshop , but even exclusive shops such as Julius Meinl , established themselves . The entrepreneurs in question often manage two or more adjacent arches. In the outskirts, they were originally mostly used as warehouses and magazines, but craft and other commercial enterprises settled in the more densely populated residential areas. In the area of ​​the northern belt line, many tenants took advantage of the possibility of a siding to the neighboring Franz-Josefs-Bahn .

In 1934, when the commission for transport facilities in Vienna , which was responsible for the city railway, was dissolved and its infrastructure including viaduct arches was transferred to the municipality of Vienna, the Austrian Federal Railways acquired some of the land below. In 2000 they acted as the lessor of the vaults under the rails used by numerous traders.

Because the commercial enterprises increasingly disappeared over time, many arches were empty for decades. At the end of the 1990s, the City of Vienna therefore launched an initiative to revitalize the Stadtbahn arches, whereupon  some trendy bars and craft businesses settled in the 8th and 9th districts. The EU community initiative URBAN was used under the name URBAN Vienna - Gürtel Plus . Along the Danube Canal , 13 arches near the Zaha Hadid House were also revitalized as part of a newly created art and gastronomy mile in 2008 and 2009 .

Many of the revitalized arches were provided with large, uniform panoramic glazing on both sides of the route, which blend harmoniously into the strict geometry of the viaduct. Dungeons that were locked and boarded up were transformed into bright, inviting places. This confirms Otto Wagner's original design, who had already planned the arches to be transparent and therefore less bulky. Inside, the architectural substance of the old brick vaults was visibly integrated into the modern furnishings in many of the rooms as part of the revival.

Sometimes the tenants use their company name to explicitly refer to their particular location. These include, for example, the KunstBOGEN gallery , the Schnittbogen textile workshop , the B72 bar in arches number 72-73, the Kulturbogen association , the Brandauers Bierbögen beer bar, the Red Arch of the SPÖ Ottakring, the venues Venster 99 and Lichtbogen 334 in the corresponding vaults number 99 and 334 or with the CrossZone a fitness center, which has its premises divided into five so-called training arcs , a therapy arena and an outdoor archery .

Overview

The following table provides an overview of all the bows still available:

route	admission	number	numbering	parallel streets	section
Upper Viennese line 10 arches		07th	1U-7U	Hackinger Kai	Bridge over the Vienna River > Zufferbrücke underpass coordinates
		03	8U-10U	Hietzinger Kai	Zufferbrücke underpass> St. Veiter bridge overpass coordinates
Waistline 290 arches		08th	I – VIII not written	Dunklergasse	Längenfeldgasse station > bridge over the coordinates line
		08th	3-10	west: Sechshauser belt east: Gumpendorfer belt	Bridge over the line> Station Gumpendorfer Straße coordinates
		04th	11-14 not written	Mariahilfer belt	Gumpendorfer Strasse station, coordinates superimposed on the station facade
		04th	15-18 not written	Larkfield Belt	Thaliastraße station > Thaliastraße / Lerchenfelder Straße underpass coordinates
		10	19-28	Larkfield Belt	Underpass Thaliastraße / Lerchenfelder Straße> Underpass Pfeilgasse coordinates
		08th	29-36	Larkfield Belt	Pfeilgasse underpass> Sanettystraße underpass coordinates
		05	37-41	Larkfield Belt	Sanettystraße underpass> Josefstädter Straße underpass coordinates
		07th	42–48 not written	Larkfield Belt	Underpass Josefstädter Straße> Underpass Friedmanngasse ( station Josefstädter Straße , overlaid by the station facade) coordinates
		09	49-57	Hernals belt	Underpass Friedmanngasse> Underpass Laudongasse coordinates
		10	58-67	Hernals belt	Laudongasse underpass> Breitenfelder Gasse underpass coordinates
		10	68-77	Hernals belt	Breitenfelder Gasse underpass> Alser Straße underpass coordinates
		11	78-82, 82A, 83-87	Hernals belt	Underpass Alser Straße> Underpass Hernalser Hauptstraße Station Alser Straße coordinates
		03	88, 88A, 89 not written	Hernals belt	Hernalser Hauptstrasse underpass> Lazarettgasse underpass (Alser Strasse station, overlaid by the station facade) Coordinates
		11	90-100	Währinger belt	Lazarettgasse underpass> Borschkegasse underpass coordinates
		11	101-111	Währinger belt	Michelbeuern depot > underpass Severingasse coordinates
		03	112-114	Währinger belt	Severingasse underpass> Klammergasse underpass coordinates
		05	115-119	Währinger belt	Underpass Klammergasse> bridge over Schulgasse, Währinger Straße and Fuchsthallergasse coordinates
		04th	120–123 not written	Währinger belt	Bridge over Schulgasse, Währinger Strasse and Fuchsthallergasse> Gentzgasse underpass ( Währinger Strasse station, overlaid by the station facade) Coordinates
		07th	124-130	Währinger belt	Gentzgasse underpass> Säulengasse underpass coordinates
		11	131-141	Währinger belt	Underpass Säulengasse> Underpass Michaelerstraße coordinates
		09	142-150	Währinger belt	Michaelerstraße underpass> Sternwartestraße underpass coordinates
		07th	151-157	Währinger belt	Underpass Sternwartestrasse> Underpass Anastasius-Grün-Gasse coordinates
		08th	158-165	Währinger belt	Underpass Anastasius-Grün-Gasse> Underpass Marsanogasse coordinates
		02	166-167	Währinger belt	Marsanogasse underpass> Lustkandlgasse underpass coordinates
		07th	168-174	Währinger belt	Underpass Lustkandlgasse> station Nußdorfer Straße coordinates
		04th	175–178 not written	Währinger belt	Station Nußdorfer Straße, coordinates superimposed on the station facade
		06th	179-184	Währinger belt	Station Nußdorfer Straße> Underpass Nußdorfer Straße coordinates
		09	185-193	Dobling belt	Underpass Nußdorfer Straße> Underpass Glatzgasse coordinates
		14th	194-207	Dobling belt	Glatzgasse underpass> junction of the connection arch coordinates
		11	208-218	Dobling belt	Junction connecting arch> underpass Heiligenstädter Straße coordinates
		43	219-261	Heiligenstädter Strasse	Heiligenstädter Strasse underpass> Franz-Ippisch-Steg coordinates
		21st	262-282	Heiligenstädter Strasse	Franz-Ippisch-Steg> Overpass over the Franz-Josefs-Bahn coordinates
Suburban line 50 arches		09	283-291	no	Overpass over the Franz-Josefs-Bahn> overpass Heiligenstädter Straße coordinates
		05	292–296 not written	no	Overpass Heiligenstädter Straße> former stop Vienna Unter-Döbling coordinates
		01	?	no	coordinates integrated into the Gersthof station
		01	297 not written to	no	Overpass Hernalser Hauptstraße> Station Hernals coordinates
		10	298-307	Weinheimergasse	Arnethgasse underpass> Ottakringer Straße underpass coordinates
		01	308 not written to	no	coordinates integrated into the Hernals station
		07th	309-315	Weinheimergasse	Underpass Ottakringer Straße> Underpass Thaliastraße coordinates
		07th	316–322 not written	no	Underpass Thaliastraße> station Ottakring coordinates
		01	323 not written to	no	coordinates integrated into the Ottakring station
		01	324 not written to	west: Amortgasse east: Drechslergasse	Goldschlagstrasse Bridge> Linzer Strasse underpass coordinates
		07th	325–331 not written	no	Linzer Straße underpass> Penzing station coordinates
Connection arch 54 arches		06th	301–306 not written	Spittelauer Lände	Friedensbrücke station > underpass at Zaha-Hadid-Haus (western access ramp) coordinates
		16	307–322 not written	Spittelauer Lände	Friedensbrücke station> underpass at Zaha-Hadid-Haus (eastern access ramp) coordinates
		14th	323-335, 335A not written	Spittelauer Lände	Underpass at Zaha-Hadid-Haus> Underpass Spittelauer Lände coordinates
		10	336–345 not written	no	Spittelauer Lände underpass> Spittelau coordinates station
		01	347 not written to	no	Spittelau station> Heiligenstädter Strasse underpass ( Wiener Gürtel Strasse passage , Gürtelbrücke driveway ) Coordinates
		07th	348-354	Dobling belt	Heiligenstädter Straße underpass> junction with the belt line coordinates
Connecting track 54 arches		06th	1-6	west: Obere Viaduktgasse east: Untere Viaduktgasse	Passage Kolonitzgasse> Radetzkyplatz underpass coordinates
		18th	7-24	west: Obere Viaduktgasse east: Untere Viaduktgasse	Radetzkyplatz underpass> Obere Weißgerberstraße underpass coordinates
		01	25th	west: Obere Viaduktgasse east: Untere Viaduktgasse	Underpass Obere Weißgerberstraße> Underpass Dampfschiffstraße coordinates
		01	?	no	Underpass Dampfschiffstraße coordinates
		01	?	no	Underpass Schüttelstraße coordinates
		27	1-27	west: Helenengasse east: Stoffellagasse	Underpass Schüttelstraße> Praterstern coordinates

The arches of the connecting railway, which opened in 1859, are significantly older than the others. In addition, the Floridsdorfer Elevated Railway, which opened in 1916, is routed mainly on viaduct arches in the Vienna city area , 114 in total. Experiences from the construction of the light rail were incorporated.

Torn off arches

The arch group, demolished in 1985, following the bridge over the row

Former viaduct arches on the Praterstern, taken from the Vienna Giant Ferris Wheel : In the center of the picture the Praterstern stop , on the left the connecting railway to the main customs office

A total of 36 other light rail arches on the southern belt line fell victim to the new construction of the Längenfeldgasse underground station, which opened in 1989, and the associated reconstruction of the access routes from 1985 :

• 8 arches between the Meidling Hauptstrasse station and the former bridge over Storchengasse / Gierstergasse
• 11 arches between the former bridge over Storchengasse / Gierstergasse and the former bridge over Stiegergasse / Längenfeldgasse
• 4 arches between the former bridge over the Stiegergasse / Längenfeldgasse and the former bridge of the belt line over the Untere Wientallinie
• 5 arches between the former bridge of the belt line over the Untere Wientallinie and the former bridge over the Koblingergasse
• 8 arches between the former bridge over Koblingergasse and the bridge over the line

The latter group of arches was replaced by the new arches I – VIII, which, however, in contrast to their historical models, have a much steeper gradient.

The single arch 346 in the area of ​​the connecting arch, in turn, was demolished after this section was closed in 1991. It had to make way for the new Vienna Spittelau traffic station , which went into operation in 1995/1996.

In addition, the Viennese connection line to the North Station used to be routed around the northern (outer city) part of the Praterstern on viaduct arches, with the Praterstern stop above the main avenue . These were removed at the end of the 1950s in order to create space for the new Praterstern station under a modified track as part of today's S-Bahn trunk line across the Praterstern .

literature

• Andreas Lehne , Stefan Oláh: Stadtbahnbogen . Metroverlag, Vienna 2012, ISBN 978-3-99300-085-1 .

Web links

Commons : Vienna Stadtbahn arches  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Wiener Zeitung : Light Rail Arches in a New Light ( Memento from October 30, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
• Wiener Stadtbahn: Belt Line (U6) "Old Arches - New Life" ( Memento from May 1, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
• Wiener Stadtbahnbögen on tramway.at, accessed on April 19, 2020

Individual evidence

1. ↑ The Viennese Stadtbahn and its buildings (first part), In: Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung . Year 1898, number 16, pp. 182–183.
2. ^ Hans Peter Pawlik, Josef Otto Slezak: Wagner's work for Vienna. Total work of art Stadtbahn (= International Archive for Locomotive History. Volume 44). Slezak, Vienna 1999, ISBN 3-85416-185-9 , p. 62
3. ^ Roland Tusch: The Viennese light rail. In: Denkmail. News from the Monument Protection Initiative, number 10, February – March 2012, ISSN  2219-2417 , pp. 27–28.
4. ↑ back
5. ↑ ^{a b} Wiener Stadtbahn: Belt Line (U6) "Old Arches - New Life" ( Memento from May 1, 2006 in the Internet Archive )
6. ↑ Stadtbahnbögen: From Otto Wagner to today on orf.at
7. ^ ^{A b} Hans Peter Pawlik, Josef Otto Slezak: Wagner's work for Vienna. Total work of art Stadtbahn (= International Archive for Locomotive History. Volume 44). Slezak, Vienna 1999, ISBN 3-85416-185-9 , p. 55
8. ↑ ^{a b} City railway arches on the Danube Canal are to be revitalized. Gastro and art mile in front of Spittelau planned until autumn 2009. - A park-and-ride facility with 300 parking spaces is also being built. In: Der Standard / APA , October 6, 2008, accessed November 19, 2019.
9. ^ Hans Peter Pawlik, Josef Otto Slezak: Wagner's work for Vienna. Total work of art Stadtbahn (= International Archive for Locomotive History. Volume 44). Slezak, Vienna 1999, ISBN 3-85416-185-9 , p. 83
10. ↑ Confusion about the monument: Nobody feels responsible. On: WienerZeitung.at. March 6, 2000, accessed October 17, 2017.
11. ↑ Martin Stuhlpfarrer: New Plans: The Revival of the Danube Canal. In: Die Presse , December 2, 2008, accessed November 19, 2019.
12. ↑ Volker Mehnert: Old arches, new life. The belt: Vienna's periphery in the middle of the city is experiencing a renaissance. In: black and white. The travel magazine, undated, accessed on November 18, 2019.
13. ^ "The Italian Loop " Construction - Destruction - Decay - Restoration of the Floridsdorfer Hochbahn on bahn-austria.at, accessed on October 1, 2017
14. ↑ See: aerial photo of the Praterstern from the 1930s. In: My Postcards Part 17. Posting from March 2, 2013 in: Drehscheibe Online (direct link to the picture on directupload.net (jpg) ): In the center of the picture the Praterstern with the route leading to the north; on the right the Praterstern stop; on the left the former North Station. Retrieved November 19, 2019.

 Map with all coordinates: OSM | WikiMap