View source for Gürtel, Vienna

{{Redirect|Gurtel|the political corruption scandal in Spain|Gürtel case}}
{{short description|Main thoroughfare in Vienna}}
[[Image:Währinger Gürtel Michelbeuern.jpg|thumb|The ''Währinger Gürtel'' close to Vienna's General Hospital (''Allgemeines Krankenhaus''). To the left is [[Währing]], Vienna's 18th district.]]
The '''Gürtel''' ({{Ipa|de|ˈɡʏʁtl̩|lang|audio=De-Gürtel.ogg}}{{literal translation|Belt}}) is a substantial [[beltway]] of [[Vienna]]. Running {{convert|13.1|km|mi|abbr=on}} parallel to the famous [[Vienna Ring Road]], it encompasses the [[inner city]] districts (''Innenbezirke'') and follows the route of the former ''[[Linienwall]]'' outer fortification. The city's [[red-light district]] is situated around the Gürtel.<ref>{{cite web |title=Austria - Vienna - Inside The Gurtel - Josefstadt |url=http://wheretogowhattosee.com/austria/vienna/insideTheGurtel/josefstadt.php |website=Where to Go, What to See |accessdate=1 February 2019}}</ref>
== History ==
[[File:August Stefan Kronstein 001.jpg|thumb|left|Painting of the ''[[Linienwall]]'' fortification (by August Stefan Kronstein)]]
The Gürtel was laid out from 1873 at the site of the former ''[[Linienwall]]'' fortification, built under [[Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Leopold I]] at the beginning of the 18th century to protect his residence from [[kuruc]] invasions in the course of [[Rákóczi's War for Independence]]. After [[World War I]], the road became the construction site for several [[public housing]] estates (''[[Gemeindebau]]ten'') in the era of [[Red Vienna]]. As in most parts of [[Austria-Hungary]], vehicles formerly moved on the left, like in Britain, until after the [[Anschluss]] in 1938. According to German regulations, traffic in Vienna was redirected to pass on the right as elsewhere on the Continent. Plans developed in the 1960s and 70s to rebuild the Gürtel as a city motorway have never been carried out. The road, like the adjacent residential areas, is however strongly affected by the high traffic volume.
== Layout ==
[[File:Ubahn-Station Alser Straße.jpg|thumb|U-Bahn station Alser Straße at ''Hernalser Gürtel'', seen towards the north]]
[[File:Wien U6 Burggasse 20050924.jpg|thumb|upright|Burggasse-Stadthalle station of the U6 line, towards the north]]
The Gürtel is not to be confused with '''B 221 Wiener Gürtel Straße''' which includes other streets like Schlachthausgasse, starts at the [[Donaukanal]] and ends at the ''Gürtelbrücke'', again at Donaukanal.
In the south it starts in the [[Landstraße]] district, at the junction with '''A23 Südosttangente''' and runs westward toward the [[Wien Hauptbahnhof|Central Station]], where the [[Vienna Pre-metro]] has been built under surface. There the ''Wiedner Gürtel'' and ''Margaretengürtel'' mark the border of [[Wieden]] and [[Margareten]] with the southern [[Favoriten]] suburb.  The Gürtel then turns north, running along the eastern rim of the [[Meidling]] suburb, crossing the [[Wien (river)|Wienfluss]] and the [[Wienzeile]] road, separating the inner city districts of [[Mariahilf]] and [[Neubau]] in the east from [[Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus]] with the [[Wien Westbahnhof|Westbahnhof]]. The road continues as the border of [[Josefstadt]] and [[Alsergrund]] with the outer [[Hernals]] and [[Währing]] districts, passing the [[Vienna General Hospital|General Hospital]] (''Allgemeines Krankenhaus, AKH'') and the [[Vienna Volksoper|Volksoper]]. It ends relatively unspectecular in [[Döbling]] district at a [[Gemeindebau]] from the 1920s called ''Professor-Jodl-Hof''
From the Wienzeile to the northern end, the dual carriageway is accompanied by the historic [[Wiener Stadtbahn|Stadtbahn]] viaduct designed by [[Otto Wagner]], today operated by the U6 [[Vienna U-Bahn|U-Bahn]] line.
== Further reading ==
* [[Madeleine Petrovic]]: ''Der Wiener Gürtel. Wiederentdeckung einer lebendigen Prachtstraße'' ([[Verlag Christian Brandstätter]]: Wien, 1998) ({{ISBN|3854477236}}).
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==References==
{{Reflist}}
== External links ==
{{commons category-inline}}
[[Category:Streets in Vienna]]
[[Category:Ring roads]]
[[Category:Landstraße]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Wieden]]
[[Category:Margareten]]
[[Category:Mariahilf]]
[[Category:Neubau]]
[[Category:Josefstadt]]
[[Category:Alsergrund]]
[[Category:Meidling]]
[[Category:Rudolfsheim-Fünfhaus]]
[[Category:Ottakring]]
[[Category:Hernals]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Währing]]
[[Category:Döbling]]
[[Category:Red-light districts in Austria]]