Wednesday 19 February 2020

Take Me Back To Vienna (3)

U-Bahn - A P.S.
Another useful feature of on-line information, in this case partnering the ÖBB isometric (?) station diagram, is a similar diagram of the U-Bahn set-up. The detail is hard to see at Blogger graphic size, but the graphic below can be enlarged with a slick click of the mouse.
Note again that the lines are colour coded and each entrance has a graphic showing access technology (stairs, escalators, lifts). The well-informed or extremely observant reader may spot what isn't there compared with UK practice.

fbb will reveal all in due course - what a tease the old codger is?

And So To The 82A
But we can use the lifts from the U1 (RED) platforms and appear in daylight some distance from the stations.
U1 runs along Lassallestrasse ...
... where, fbb guesses, it replaced trams. The map above is associated with the Wiener Linien journey planner, so you need to ask it a question to find the right bit of the map. Scrolling without asking is a challenge beyond fbb. But if you zoom in somewhat you get exquisite detail.
Note the additional stairways a little further along the road (upper right) ...
... and their presence on the U-Bahn graphic. And we can even find them in reality via Google Streetview.
Stitching this together with the all-modes network diagram ...
... we can work out that our "puzzle" 82A leaves from close by the U-Bahn line 1 exit.

And, tada!, there it is!
We are looking back to the main U1 exit with the station buildings off to the left. There is a lady consulting a timetable frame which contains, not a "proper" timetable, but a departure list for the 15 minute frequency 82A.

One disappointment is that the plans of öBB station and the U-Bahn do not tell you which bus or tram stops where. Were this a busy interchange in Paris, for example, each individual route would be signposted from within the station circulating area. fbb does not know whether exits are route specific in Vienna but can find no evidence on-line to suggest that you get anything other than a generic (to bus and tram) sign.
You would need some detailed research or good local knowledge or even advice from a real person to find the 82A stop at Praterstern and, having located the stop, find you way through the public transport maze to get to it!

Wiener Linien does not publish timetables as such, but the web site has the same departure lists as displayed at the bus stop, one for each stop.

Here are the departures from the stop near Praterstrern interchange.
There is no Sunday service. The route would appear to be only ten minutes long (two buses in steam?) so the lack of an acurate timetable is not a great problem.
Departures from the "terminus" at Krieau show that different stops are served ...
... and we are in a loop situation as confirmed by the diagrammatic network map.
The stop at Elderschplatz is of interest as it also appears on route 11A. The "platz" is a road joining the two routes. The stops for route 11A have shelters ...
... no such luxury for most locations on the 82A! But it is encouraging that possible interchanges via a short walk are clearly shown on the diagram. London's Underground has just introduced this designation but it is rare elsewhere.

A common stop inbound and outbound is Messe Prater. This is, amongst other things, an exhibition centre.
The outbound stop is right there, the inbound just opposite and the U-Bahn just along the road.
No 3 son was on duty there at a medical conference. The topic?

Bowel diseases!

The lad was in residence at the University which fills much of the end loop of the 82A.
We see the rest of the loop starting at Krieau.
The "way back" calls at Sudportalstrasse.

The puzzle picture of the full frontal 82A bus was a clip from the full shot of the bus at Sudportalstrasse, one of the Uni stops.
Campus WU is huge ...
... and very spectacular.

It is likely that the 82A's main purpose is to provide a link between Uni and U-Bahn at Praterstern, Messe Prater and Krieau. It seems to do that very well  indeed!

Our Vienna blogs will end with a look at fares and other publicity; plus a quick glimpse at that autonomous bus experiment.

 Next Vienna blog : Thursday 20th February 

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