Vienna's first street park transforms old tram tracks into a green oasis
Vienna’s first ‘street park’ has opened near the Donauzentrum shopping center in Kagran. The 250-metre-long space transforms old tram tracks, a traffic lane, and 60 parking spots into a green area with trees, misting showers, and water features. Meanwhile, budget cuts threaten future urban projects across the city.
The new street park in Kagran repurposes disused infrastructure into a public space. It now holds 60 trees, 19 misting showers, and five water features. City Councilor Ulli Sima attended the unofficial opening and a tree-planting ceremony to mark the occasion.
Elsewhere in the city, the ‘superblock’ project in Favoriten is nearing completion. Centred around Herzgasse Middle School, the €15 million redesign draws inspiration from Barcelona’s urban model. Officials expect to finish the work within weeks. However, Vienna’s financial struggles are forcing cutbacks. Finance chief Barbara Novak has slashed funding for cycling projects, reducing the bike infrastructure budget from €60 million in past years to nothing in 2023. As a result, plans for new bike lanes and cycle streets have stalled. The broader impact of these cuts is already visible. Future urban projects will likely shrink in scale, with ‘mini-blocks’ replacing larger ‘superblocks’. Public transport fares have also risen, partly due to budget pressures and Sima’s expanded role overseeing the municipal utility company.
The street park in Kagran and the upcoming superblock in Favoriten show Vienna’s push for greener public spaces. Yet with no funding for cycling projects and tighter budgets, future developments will be smaller in scope. The city now faces balancing ambitious urban plans with financial reality.
