Vienna – Raising the bar of liveability

26 January 2017

Explore how Vienna balances its rich heritage with bold innovation to remain one of the world's most liveable cities, with ambitions to become Europe's Environmental Model City.

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One of the most liveable cities in the world, Vienna is also a charming historic city. Despite its achievements, the city continues to raise the bar of liveability and sustainability, aspiring to become Europe’s Environmental Model City. Here's a visual walk-through of this millennia old city that balances heritage with innovation.

Between the East and West

Vienna is a historic “Emperor’s city” with over 2 millennia of history, once an important city of the Holy Roman Empire, then the capital of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire and now the capital of the Republic of Austria. Following decades of being the eastern “dead end” of Western Europe after the second World War, the city capitalised on the opportunity of the fall of the Iron Curtain in the early 90s to reposition itself as the heart of Europe, with connections to its east and west.

Aerial view of a dense European city with red-roofed buildings, a tall cathedral spire, and a river visible.

Vienna’s historic city centre © Damien Woon

White baroque stone sculpture stands beside a grand yellow classical building under a partly cloudy blue sky.

Schönbrunn Palace © Damien Woon

Blue Danube

Vienna’s urban development evolved with the Danube, one of the biggest rivers of the European continent that runs through the city and 9 other countries in the region. The development of the New Danube and Danube Island, and safeguarding of more than 50% of land areas as green spaces demonstrate not only Vienna’s resolve to maintain a high quality of life in the city, but also to raise the bar by setting the benchmark as an environmentally responsible city to its Danube-sharing neighbours.

Aerial view of a large river lock and dam system with industrial facilities along green waterways near a city.

The Danube Island and New Danube (on the extreme right) © Damien Woon

A New Public Space in the City

Today, there are many leisure and sports activities freely available for the people of Vienna on Danube Island, with a host of facilities such as extensive paths, shallow beaches, barbecue spots, sports facilities, restaurants and bars, and a water body suitable for water sports. The Danube Island is also host to the Danube Island Festival – the biggest open-air event in Europe for over 25 years.

Large outdoor music festival crowd gathered near a river with a lit stage and city skyline in the background.

Danube Island Festival © Stadt Wien

Beyond the Museum City Archetype

Unlike some other European cities that are similarly steeped in long history, Vienna does not stagnate as a “museum city” but instead continues to innovate itself. Tourism is a significant contributor to Vienna’s economy, and its tourist infrastructure such as hotels, restaurants, and tourism enterprises are well used by both visitors and locals alike, contributing to its high quality of urban life.

Pedestrians walk in a plaza in front of a large Gothic cathedral with a tall spire and patterned roof.

St. Stephen’s Cathedral © Damien Woon

Beyond its UNESCO World Heritage Status

Despite the limited changes that the city can make due to its UNESCO World Heritage Site status, Vienna is continually innovating and has injected vibrancy through focused developments in 13 key areas that will have impacts across the entire city.

Aerial view of a European city at dusk with a tall cathedral spire rising above rooftops under a pastel sky.

Vienna's historic centre © Damien Woon

Reconnecting to its Neighbours

The Wien Hauptbahnhof or Vienna Central Railway Station with its stunning diamond-shaped roof and located just outside the UNESCO World Heritage city centre, is a major redevelopment of the former railway station and transformed the former terminus into an interchange between Eastern and Western Europe.

Two people ride escalators in a modern terminal with a tall geometric glass and steel ceiling.

A modern train station with a sweeping angular canopy roof, numbered platforms, and a lone person walking on the concourse.

Wien Hauptbahnhof © Damien Woon

Cutting-edge Architecture

The Prater-Messe-Krieau-Stadion area is one of Vienna’s 13 key development areas, where a new WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) Campus is developed next to the historic Prater entertainment district. The Campus houses cutting-edge buildings designed by world-renowned architectural practices such as Zaha Hadid Architects, CRAB Studio (Peter Cook), and Atelier Hitoshi Abe.

A woman with a bag walks through a modern white multi-level interior atrium with open balconies.

Library & Learning Centre designed by Zaha Hadid Architects © Damien Woon

Two people walk past a modern white building with irregularly arranged rectangular windows beside a reflective pool.

Departments Building designed by Estudio Carme Pinós S. L. © Damien Woon

A person with a backpack walks past a large modern building with rust-colored corten steel panels and angular geometry.

Modern multi-story building with horizontal slatted facade in orange and wood tones under a partly cloudy blue sky.

Ensuring Clean Water to the City

Clean water is a key criterion of the quality of life and citizen satisfaction in Vienna. Natural spring water from the Lower Austrian and Styrian Limestone Alps was first supplied directly to the city in 1873. The city employs various ways to ensure safe storage and supply of clean water to its residents, such as underground reservoirs as pictured above.

A lone person walks along a narrow ledge inside a vast underground concrete chamber with reflective water and rows of columns.

Housing the People

Vienna’s approach to housing is both unique and progressive: over 50% of housing in the city is comprised of low cost rentals to ensure sufficient housing for people of low income, and prevent the formation of ghettos. The city’s long-term social housing programme began from the 1920s and heavily influenced by the art deco style (such as Karl-Marx-Hof pictured above), and evolved through the years with new experimental housing developments, as well as renewal programmes to continually refurbish the older flats with modern facilities.

Facade of Karl Marx-Hof, a large red and beige residential building with arched gateways and statues.

Children play on log structures in a green courtyard surrounded by modern apartment buildings with curved balconies.

Environmental Education

Vienna believes in environmental education, especially among the youth, to maintain its high quality of life and sustainability. For instance, Ulli Sima, City Councillor for the Environment (pictured above), has been at the forefront in reaching out to schoolchildren to instil good environmental habits from an early age.