Walking in Vienna: Smoothing the Way for Creating a New Urban Lifestyle

Abstract

Vienna, Austria’s capital, is one of the most liveable cities worldwide and has undertaken various efforts to foster the attractiveness of walking. Although the share of walking in Vienna is already high, the city aims to further increase the level of walking trips, combined with the ambitious goal of 80 per cent of Eco mobility by the year 2025. In recent years walking has been integrated into different strategies and plans (such as Vienna’s smart City Framework Strategy, Urban Development Plan 2025 and Strategy Paper Pedestrian Traffic). In addition, the City of Vienna has instituted the Mobility Agency for Vienna with its own officers for walking and cycling. Infrastructure measures were complemented by strong communication activities. 2015 was declared as the ‘Year of Walking’, with a wide range of events, products and services to promote walking. To supplement these activities, a personalised travel planning campaign was integrated to encourage people to replace short car trips with active travel modes. The ‘Year of Walking’ 2015 campaign increased the awareness about the benefits of walking among citizens and improved Vienna’s image as a city suitable for walking. The latest modal split numbers and monitoring activities show the success of the integrated approach by an increase of walking trips. As walking has positive impacts on people’s health and the development of a healthier and more liveable urban environment, the City of Vienna is on the right path to foster a sustainable urban mobility lifestyle and quality of life for its citizens.

Citation

Unbehaun, W., Gaupp-Berghausen, M. and Jens, P. (2017), "Walking in Vienna: Smoothing the Way for Creating a New Urban Lifestyle", Walking (Transport and Sustainability, Vol. 9), Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 317-346. https://doi.org/10.1108/S2044-994120170000009018