Work has begun on the Verbindungsbahn upgrade in Vienna, a project worth around €511.5 million, but S80 trains every 15 minutes, twice the pre-construction frequency, are not expected until 2036.

Peter Hanke, Ulli Sima and Andreas Matthä behind an ÖBB train display at the Verbindungsbahn project launch
Peter Hanke, Ulli Sima and Andreas Matthä stand behind an ÖBB train display at the Verbindungsbahn project launch. Photo: Lukas Leonte / ÖBB.

Austria’s Federal Minister Peter Hanke, Vienna mobility councillor Ulli Sima and ÖBB chief executive Andreas Matthä gave the official go-ahead for the main works. The investment by ÖBB and its partners covers 5 km of the Verbindungsbahn, the line between Hütteldorf and Meidling that carries S-Bahn line S80. Matthä said the project will tie the western and southern main lines more closely together and create capacity that local rail services urgently need.

Once the project is finished, the S80 is due to run every 15 minutes, offering twice as many connections as the timetable before construction. ÖBB expects around 20,000 additional passengers to board and alight each day.

New stops, crossings and noise protection

The scheme adds two stops, at Hietzinger Hauptstraße and at the Stranzenbergbrücke, and modernises Wien Speising station. Speising will move further east because step-free boarding is not possible at its current position on a tight curve. For the first time, comprehensive noise protection will be built along the route, and six level crossings will close in favour of step-free underpasses.

In the northern section, the tracks will run on an elevated alignment of about 800 metres between the Wiental bridges and Beckgasse. This allows the level crossings at Auhofstraße and Hietzinger Hauptstraße to be removed, ending waits at the barriers there.

Three construction sections until 2036

ÖBB-Infrastruktur is building the project in three sections, one after another. The northern section, from Wien Hütteldorf to around Schrutkagasse, runs from September 2026 to mid-2030, and the Hietzinger Hauptstraße stop is due to open at the end of 2029. The middle section, to Hofwiesengasse, follows from 2030 to mid-2032. Work on the southern section, to Rosenhügel, is scheduled for 2035 and 2036.

The 15-minute S80 service depends on all three sections being complete. ÖBB and the regional transport association Verkehrsverbund Ost-Region (VOR) said in May that, because of the delay caused by the approval process, it is expected only in 2036.

S80 cut back to Meidling until at least 2027

Since 7 September 2026, S80 trains have run only between Wien Aspern Nord and Wien Meidling, and this is set to last until at least the end of 2027. From Meidling, the trains continue south as the S3 to Mödling. Replacement buses link Meidling and Hütteldorf, stopping at Speising and at the future Hietzinger Hauptstraße stop. They run every 15 minutes between 05:30 and 20:00 on working days from Monday to Friday, and every 30 minutes at other times, including weekends and public holidays.

ÖBB and VOR link the cut to the long approval process and to overlaps with other projects. During construction, only one track can stay in use in the works area. At the same time, the Verbindungsbahn serves as a diversion route for the Lainzer Tunnel and has to handle extra train movements to workshops at Westbahnhof while Vienna’s S-Bahn trunk line is closed. To free up capacity for these movements, the S80 had to be withdrawn from the line.

S80 service between Meidling and Hütteldorf, 2026 to 2036
Period S80 route Service between Meidling and Hütteldorf
Before 4 July 2026 Full route over the Verbindungsbahn S80 trains every 30 minutes*
4 July – 6 September 2026 Wien Aspern Nord – Wien Hauptbahnhof Replacement buses every 30 minutes
7 September 2026 – at least end of 2027 Wien Aspern Nord – Wien Meidling, then as S3 to Mödling Replacement buses every 15 minutes on working days Monday to Friday 05:30–20:00, every 30 minutes at other times, including weekends and public holidays
After all three sections are complete, expected in 2036 Full route over the Verbindungsbahn S80 trains every 15 minutes

Until at least the end of 2027, buses replace S80 trains between Meidling and Hütteldorf, and the 15-minute S80 service is expected only after completion in 2036. The documents checked do not set out the S80 service pattern between the end of 2027 and 2036. *Railway Supply calculation: ÖBB describes the 15-minute service as double the connections offered before construction. Sources: ÖBB and VOR release, 11 May 2026; ÖBB-Infrastruktur project page.

Court decisions before the start

Sima said the authorisation procedure took five years, more than three and a half of them in appeal proceedings. The transport ministry approved the project in March 2022 after an environmental impact assessment. On 22 January 2026, Austria’s Federal Administrative Court amended that approval and otherwise confirmed it. Residents and citizens’ initiatives then turned to the Constitutional Court, which on 15 April 2026 refused to give their complaints suspensive effect.

In those proceedings, ÖBB argued that a further postponement risked a delay of around 20 years. It also pointed to about €100 million in repair costs that the existing line would otherwise need. The court noted that the project developer bears the risk of lost spending if the complainants later succeed.

On 16 June 2026, the Constitutional Court declined to hear the complaints, finding they had no prospect of success, and referred them to the Supreme Administrative Court. On 7 September 2026, the Federal Administrative Court refused suspensive effect for an appeal on points of law lodged there by two complainants.

During construction, ÖBB plans information events, project exhibitions and a new information box on Speisinger Straße, along with regular updates for residents and passengers.