In February 2015, it was the fifth largest tram network in the world,[2] at about 176.9 kilometres (109.9 mi) in total length and 1,071 stations.

By October 1865, trams could be recorded as operating between Schottentor and Hernals, and on 24 April 1866, the route was extended to Dornbach.

At the turn of the twentieth century, Vienna's Bürgermeister Karl Lueger began the municipalization of urban services, which, until then, had been supplied by private enterprises.

The lines were integrated into the Gemeinde Wien – Städtische Straßenbahnen service, which was entered on 4 April 1902 into the company register.

With their lower noise and odour production compared with horse-drawn and steam tramways, the electric trams quickly became favourites.

Well into the second half of the twentieth century, Viennese frequently referred to the electrified tramway as die Elektrische (the electric).

Up until 1910, the only trams delivered to the Vienna tramway network were vehicles with unglazed platforms (or cabs), i.e.: without any windscreens protecting occupants from the cold and wind.

On 16 October 1925, the Wiener Stadtbahn, which had been taken over by the municipality of Vienna, was absorbed into the tramway network's tariff system.

In 1929, the peak tram fleet was achieved, and in 1930 the network reached its maximum length, 318 km (198 mi).

During World War II, tram operations continued, for as long as Vienna remained spared from fighting.

In 1948, Vienna acquired second hand trams of Type Z (road numbers 4201-4242) under the Marshall Plan from New York.

Some of the major modifications required for the Amerikaner to be able to run in Vienna were carried out by Gräf & Stift in Wien-Liesing.

Even in the 1950s, new trams were consistently obtained in series of only limited numbers, as from 1955 the abolition of the tramway in Vienna was the contemporary transport planning vision, and investments were made accordingly.

From 1960, there was ongoing conversion of sections of track running through narrow streets in the densely built up areas within the Gürtel; the best known example is line 13 from Wien Südbahnhof to Alserstrasse.

In the 1960s, a pre-metro system was built to move tramway sections under surface, that - according to the attitudes in those years - obstructed car traffic on the main roads.

The realisation that the contemplated abolition of the tramway would not be a short-term project, mainly because of the rather lengthy construction of the planned U-Bahn network, led to the introduction, from 1959, of the six-axle articulated type E and E1 trams, of which a total of 427 were built to 1976.

As this policy is still in effect today, further closures of tramway lines can be expected, to coincide with the further expansion of the U-Bahn network.

On the other hand, line 42 is the shortest route, only covering 3.4 km (2.1 mi) from Schottentor to its terminus at Antonigasse in the district of Währing.

This allowed all tram stops in Vienna to be served by such vehicles, thus providing step-free travel throughout the entire network.

Following a number of serious accidents, the majority of the high-floor trams have been fitted with electric door edge sensors and rear-view mirrors.

These cars have an updated interior design (yellow handrails, gray walls and red plastic seats) and door-closing indicator lights.

In 2015, Bombardier Transportation's specially-designed Flexity Wien series won against the ULF from Siemens in a tender for 119 new trams, including an option for a further 37 units, purchased with a maintenance agreement.

The trams, based on the Adtranz Incentro design, are 34 metres in length and have six double-leaf doors, one fewer than the long ULFs.

Throughout its history, the Vienna tramway network has had a variety of Remisen ("carriage houses"), which were officially described as depots or stations.

Due to the abandonment of numerous lines, some of these facilities have now been closed for trams (e.g., 2., Vorgartenstraße, 3., Erdberg, 12., Assmayergasse, 14., Breitensee, 15., Linke Wienzeile, 18., Währing, 22., Kagran).

The depots are split into the following sectors; North - Floridsdorf, Brigittenau and Kagran, Central - Hernals and Gurtel, South - Favoriten and Simmering, West - Rudolfsheim, Ottakring and Speising.

Certain Lines or vehicles are assigned to each depot or parking facility: Heavier maintenance, along with periodic servicing, is performed in the Main Workshops of the Wiener Linien.[where?]