Vienna pre-metro

The Vienna premetro or U-Straßenbahn refers to sections of the Vienna tram network constructed as underground tunnels during the 1960s and 1970s. The tunnels are maintained and operated by Wiener Linien, the main public transport operator in Vienna. Additionally, one section is also used by the Wiener Lokalbahnen (WLB), which operates a regional tram-train service. These sections are known in German as Unterpflasterstraßenbahn (literally "under-pavement tramway") or Untergrundstraßenbahn ("underground tramway") and are sometimes abbreviated as USTRAB, or USTRABA.

One major section, the Zweierlinie, located close to the city center, was converted into the modern Vienna U-Bahn system and opened as such in 1980. Another large section, located along the southern Gürtel (belt road), opened on 11 January 1969 and remains in operation as an underground tramway tunnel. In total, five underground tram sections were constructed.

These premetro tunnels allowed trams to bypass congested surface traffic and were designed with the possibility of future conversion to full metro lines in mind.

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