Travellers heading to or from Vienna International Airport over the next 13 months will have to rethink their ground transportation. The Vienna Tourist Board confirmed today (26 September) that the central section of the S-Bahn core line between Wien Praterstern and Wien Hauptbahnhof closed on 7 September for extensive track modernisation and will remain shut until the end of October 2027. To bridge the gap, the City Airport Train (CAT) has replaced its non-stop rail service with premium coaches running every 12–15 minutes between the airport and Wien Mitte/Landstraße. Journey time is 21 minutes and up to five buses per hour operate during the morning and evening peaks. However, CAT’s in-town check-in counters at Wien Mitte are suspended for the duration of the works. Long-distance ÖBB Railjet and Intercity trains still connect the airport with Wien Hauptbahnhof twice hourly, while regular S7 services now terminate at St. Marx, requiring passengers to change to tram-line 18, tram 71 or bus 74A for the city centre. The Vienna Airport Lines network has also added two new routes—to Karlsplatz and Praterstern—from 5 September. For companies managing tight connection windows, mobility managers should advise inbound staff to allow at least 15 extra minutes compared with the pre-closure CAT train. Organisations that rely on the CAT in-town check-in service for large group departures (for example, congress delegates) will need to shift baggage drop-off back to the airport itself. The upgrade is part of a €1.4 billion ÖBB project to raise line speeds and install the European Train Control System on Vienna’s urban rail spine. Despite the inconvenience, officials say the finished corridor will shorten airport–city rail times and add capacity ahead of the 2027 European Company Games in Vienna.
Source: Vienna Tourist Board
