AUSTRIA – Vienna, Steinsporn Bridge // The Living Daylights (1987)
Steinsporn Bridge in Vienna was used in a James Bond border scene. Without the action, the bridge looks boring – but it is the gate to a real paradise.
Why Bond was here
James Bond (Timothy Dalton) is helping Soviet renegade general Koskov (Jeroen Krabbé) entering the West via Bratislava and Vienna. The MI6 is operating a smuggling sledge through border-crossing gas pipelines: Koskov is put in it, while Bond drives his car over the normal border crossing nearby. The Steinsporn Bridge south of Vienna is used as the border station.
The border crossing at Steinsporn Bridge
How you gonna get there
The bridge is some five kilometers southeast from the Vienna city center. It connects the eastern suburbs with the Donauinsel, a small island strip in the Danube river that is loved by the locals as a recreational paradise.
Best way to get to Steinsporn Bridge is to rent a car and drive all the way down. Head for the A23 autobahn direction Praha and take the first exit south towards Kaisermühlendamm. Then drive south along Raffineriestraße. Steinsporn Bridge is only allowed for pedestrians, but you can park your car in front of it.
If you like to use public transportation, take the metro line U2 to the station “Donaustadtbrücke” and then enter bus number 92B direction “Ölhafen”. Get off at “Raffineriestr./Biberhaufenweg”. The Wiener Linien homepage will help you with planning your trip.
Good to know
The bridge itself looks pretty boring without any prepped border controls and police men walking around. But there is a lot to discover nearby. The Donauinsel is a beautiful tree covered island that streches for 21 kilometers in the Danube. There are sandy beaches, where the Viennese head for a nice afternoon bath. There are long bicycle lanes to take a stroll through the country side. There is a surfing school, a water ski lift, an admission free water playground and even a boat rental service – for all your water action to come true. Long story short: The Donauinsel is your perfect day off in this culture and lifestyle packed city.
Right next to the Steinsporn bridge is a training center for canoe and rafting sports. From the bridge you can watch the canoeists practice. Or you go down to the station and sit down on the terrace of “Himmel und Wasser” (“Sky and Water”), a restaurant and bar with its own Danube beach.
© 2015 Huntingbond (1,3), © 1987 Danjaq, LLC and United Artists Corporation (2)