The downtown Wien area is gorgeous! They’ve got a good transit system to start with, so there’s no reason more of the city can’t become pedestrianized. I haven’t been there for a while, but I hope they’re making progress on turning the city into a better place for people.

A quick search turns up at least some efforts:
https://cityhallwatch.wordpress.com/2024/05/15/mariahilferstrasse-pedestrianized-street-vienna/
https://www.wien.gv.at/english/transportation/road-construction/kaerntnerstrasse/

The city does score well on urban mobility:
https://www.oliverwymanforum.com/mobility/urban-mobility-readiness-index/vienna.html

I had one of the 10" eeePC machines for years. That thing was a tank. It did everything I needed it to, especially weird networking configurations. The battery also lasted over 6 hours. I mostly ran Crunchbang #! Linux on it.

I don’t think I could live on a 10" screen anymore, but back in the day it was a dream machine.

That’s a phenomenal idea, and one that many other cities have used to make their venues usable for big events.

We used to ride the MAX train into events in Portland. Trying to drive to a huge stadium and park is just a huge mess for everyone involved, including the surrounding city that’s impacted by it.

TriMet would run extra trains at the start & end of the event. Back then the stadium was also in the Fareless Square area so you didn’t even have to pay. Yes, the trains were packed, but that’s a good thing. Over time they would run more and more trains, and now the area has trams as well. Downtown event arenas are 100% doable with modern public transit.

To sum up: the referendum to make the core of Berlin largely car free is proceeding past court challenges. If enacted, it would make Berlin the largest pedestrianized city area in the world by a long shot.

I’m already on the road ahead of you.

Spent 30 years campaigning, calling, sign waving, writing letters, donating to candidates, causes, and groups. Even ran for office a couple of times. Every year it gets worse and I’ve got kids. They don’t need to live in a dystopian place so we’re on the road. Headed to a developed nation. Greener pastures,.but it’s worth a try.