Redesign of Thaliastraße Vienna by DND Landschaftsplanung

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Thaliastraße – A Renewed Viennese Boulevard

Built as a boulevard in the late 19th century in the suburb of Ottakring, the Thaliastraße in Vienna still plays a central role in the city’s structure. The 2.5 km long street connects the forecourt of the U3 subway terminal station with the U6 station Thaliastraße and continues into Lerchenfelder Straße, leading toward the Inner City. Once, Thaliastraße served as the direct connection from the Inner City to the recreational periphery built during the Gründerzeit at the turn of the century. The street stretches out as if drawn with a ruler and was once lined with restaurants, manufactories, shops, and gardens catering to Vienna’s working-class population.

From passage to promenade
Until recently, the street served mainly as a transit route. Car traffic dominated the scene, and the former boulevard atmosphere had long vanished. In its previous condition, the street was characterized by extensive paving, little greenery, and a clear priority for car traffic. As such, it no longer met the requirements of contemporary urban usage. The effects of climate change further exacerbated the street’s uninhabitable conditions during the summer. The city of Vienna wished to redesign the street into a climate-resilient boulevard.
Despite being inhospitable, the street was still heavily used by many people. Two tram lines run from Ottakring into the city, and a large number of pedestrians and cyclists used the street in their daily lives. The redesign of Thaliastraße, designed by DnD Landschaftsplanung, was carried out between 2020 and 2023 in two construction phases. A third phase extends the redesign even further towards the Wienerwald.

Ways to improve
The goal of the redesign was to create a resilient street design—a “climate boulevard,” as it was frequently referred to in the media. Numerous new tree plantings and water elements along the street were meant to create a cool microclimate and provide relief to the residents of the 16th district during the summer. A series of additional measures aimed to shift the focus from car traffic to public and pedestrian traffic: In addition to the introduction of a 30 km/h speed limit, car parking spaces were reduced and converted into loading zones. The former parking spaces became furnished and shaded seating areas, creating regularly greened spaces along the sidewalks on both sides of the street. A number of side streets with dead ends or little car traffic were expanded into pocket squares with seating, play elements, or water features, where the people of the neighborhood spend their afternoons and play or hang out.
The cross-sectional profile of the street was improved, tailored to the existing conditions: Pedestrians now enjoy up to six meters of sidewalk space on both sides, while the crossing width for pedestrians was reduced from ten to six meters. Since its redesign, Thaliastraße has become a versatile space for both staying and passing through. With the reduction of the speed limit and the structural redesign, the formerly busy transit route has transformed into a greened recreational zone with numerous tree plantings, seating areas, water features, mist fountains, and drinking fountains.

Key facts:
Total length of Thaliastraße: 2.5km
Tree plantings: 223 pcs.
Fog steles: 42 pcs.
Water features: 6 pcs.
Drinking fountains: 25 pcs.

Additional information to the plan: As the street is over 2.5 km long, we cannot provide a complete simplified plan. Instead, we can show a section of Thaliastraße as an example of how the street was renewed. The street’s cross-section was adapted to human dimensions, parking spaces were reduced, and sidewalks were widened. Perennial areas and tree plantings, mist features, and drinking fountains complement the furnishings and create high-quality seating areas, much like an outdoor living room.

Photo credits: © Helena Zottmann / DnD GmbH