Lainz Tunnel

The Lainz Tunnel is a 12.8-kilometre double-track railway tunnel beneath Vienna. It links Austria’s Western, Southern, Eastern and Donauländebahn railways, smoothing connections across the city. Built in the 2000s and early 2011s, it removes steep gradients to allow high-speed trains to reach Wien Hauptbahnhof. The tunnel has one bore with two tracks and two single-track bores, joining the nearby Wienerwald Tunnel. Near its western end it passes under a stormwater basin and the Lainzer Tiergarten forest. At the eastern end it splits into two branches before Wien Meidling and Inzersdorf. The tunnel was planned to speed passenger and freight services through Vienna. Passenger trains reach 160 km/h while freight trains are limited to 120 km/h. It carries the Magistrale for Europe route and reduces travel times for international trains. Before its opening, long-distance trains had to reverse or switch stations; now they run straight through to Hauptbahnhof. Freight trains use a branch near the eastern portal to reach Vienna’s central classification yard. The project also added capacity on the Westbahn corridor between Vienna and St. Pölten. Visitors cannot walk inside the tunnel, but they can see its portals and ventilation shafts above ground. The western entrance lies close to the Lainzer Tiergarten, a large forested park in Hietzing. The eastern branches emerge near Wien Meidling station and the Inzersdorf intermodal terminal. Above the route, sensors and monitoring wells remain visible, showing how ground conditions were managed during construction. The tunnel’s alignment avoids residential areas, keeping noise and vibration low. Its completion transformed east–west rail travel through the city.