Rail transport in Switzerland

Narrow-gauge railways

Due to lack of space, the trains partly run on the street or right next to it.

RhB and MGB

The Rhätische Bahn (RhB), lit. 'Rhaetian Railway', is the longest metre-gauge railway network in Switzerland. Located in the eastern Swiss Alps, it links Arosa, Disentis, Davos and St. Moritz with Chur in the canton of Grisons (Graubünden). One line, operated by the Bernina Express (a Panorama Express, PE), crosses the Italy–Switzerland border to Tirano in the Valtellina valley. The Bernina Pass is the highest point on this line, at an altitude of 2,253 m (7,392 ft). It is also the highest rail crossing in Europe. Chur and Landquart are RhB's rail junctions with the Swiss Federal Railways' standard gauge network. RhB's lines pass through the Landquart, Vorderrhein and upper Alpine Rhine valleys and several side valleys, as well as the Engadine, the upper valley of the river Inn. The network has a total length of 366 km (227 mi).

The Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB), lit. 'Matterhorn Gotthard Railway', was founded in 2003 through the merger of the Furka Oberalp Bahn (FO) with the Brig–Zermatt Bahn (BVZ; BVZ means Brig–Visp–Zermatt). The former Furka Oberalp Bahn was a metre-gauge railway in the high southern Alps. Its name refers to two passes, the Furka Pass and the Oberalp Pass. The Furka Pass lies at the upper end of the Rhône valley. The Oberalp Pass is the highest point on this line at 2,033 m (6,670 ft) above sea level, and lies at the upper end of the Rhine valley. The line runs from Disentis/Mustér to Brig. At Andermatt, the line connects with the former Schöllenenbahn to Göschenen on the standard gauge Gotthard Railway of Swiss Federal Railways. Brig in the canton of Valais is a rail junction with standard gauge lines of Swiss Federal Railways and BLS. It sits at the north end of the Simplon Tunnel on the Milan–Lausanne line and Milan–Bern line. The total length of the FO railway was 100 km (62 mi). The former Brig–Zermatt Bahn was a short line between Brig and Zermatt. It passes through the valleys of the Vispa and Matter Vispa, tributaries of the Rhône. The total length of the BVZ line was 43 km (27 mi).

The Glacier Express (GEX), a Panorama Express (PE), runs on the combined route, using lines of RhB and MGB (St. Moritz - Filisur - Chur - Disentis/Mustér - Andermatt - Brig - Visp - Zermatt). A one-day trip in panoramic-view cars takes tourists from St. Moritz to Zermatt, or vice versa, through some of the most spectacular scenery of the Alps. It is the longest long-distance train service in Switzerland. The journey from Zermatt to St. Moritz takes about 8 hours.

Further narrow-gauge railways

Eastern Switzerland

The Appenzeller Bahnen (AB), lit. 'Appenzell Railways', with its total of 77 km (48 mi) of mainly metre-gauge tracks just recently combined (2006) the earlier separate Trogenerbahn from St. Gallen to Trogen, the standard-gauge railway (partial rack railway) from Rorschach to Heiden, the funicular from Rheineck to Walzenhausen, as well as the previous Appenzeller Bahnen (including another rack railway). The AB connects towns within the cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden and Appenzell Ausserrhoden with the city of St. Gallen and other towns in the canton of St. Gallen. Since 2021, the narrow-gauge Frauenfeld–Wil railway (FWB), linking Frauenfeld in the canton of Thurgau with Wil in the canton of St. Gallen, also belongs to Appenzell Railways. All AB lines are used by services of St. Gallen S-Bahn.

Bernese Oberland and adjacent areas

The Montreux Oberland Bernois Railway (MOB) runs 75 km (47 mi) long Montreux–Lenk im Simmental line from Montreux on Lake Geneva to Zweisimmen, with a connecting line to Lenk in the Simmental. The section from Montreux to Zweisimmen, approximately 63 km (39 mi) long, is part of the "Golden Pass Panorama" trip from Montreux to Interlaken (and further to Lucerne), a trip which combines rides on the MOB, for some connections the BLS, and from Interlaken onwards the Zentralbahn (zb).

From Interlaken, the narrow-gauge Brünigbahn section of the Zentralbahn (zb) runs 74 km (46 mi) further to Lucerne. It skirts Lake Brienz and passes through the range of mountains to the north of the lake via Brünig Pass, and then drops into Obwalden (the Sarner Aa valley) to Lucerne. The zb also runs the line between Lucerne and Engelberg.

The Berner Oberland Bahn (BOB) is a 24 km (15 mi) long line from Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald. It begins at Interlaken Ost and divides at Zweilütschinen, about 10 km (6.2 mi) south of Interlaken. The western branch leads to Lauterbrunnen, while the eastern branch leads to Grindelwald. It is possible to make a loop by taking the Lauterbrunnen branch and returning via the Grindelwald branch. The two branches are connected by the Wengernalp Bahn.

The Wengernalpbahn (WAB) is a 19 km (12 mi) long line between the villages of Lauterbrunnen and Grindelwald, leading over the Eiger ridge at the Kleine Scheidegg junction station at Kleine Scheidegg. In the winter, this junction is a ski resort served by many lifts and trails, as well as the rail line. Skiers can ride the train from the valleys below to return to the top of the runs.

The Jungfraubahn (JB), which is also rack-and-pinion throughout, starts at Kleine Scheidegg and runs 9 km (5.6 mi) through tunnels in the Eiger and Mönch, leading to the "Jungfraujoch", a saddle between the Mönch and the Jungfrau summits. At the saddle are a visitor centre and an observatory. The Aletsch Glacier, largest in Europe, runs to the south toward the Rhône valley.

The Bergbahn Lauterbrunnen-Mürren (BLM) is 6 km (3.7 mi) long, divided into two independent parts, the first part being a cable car (which runs above the old funicular railway, which was replaced in 2006), the second an adhesion railway.

At Brienz the Brienz Rothorn Bahn (BRB), a steam-hauled rack railway, ascends to near the summit of the Brienzer Rothorn.

Western Switzerland and Valais

The Chemins de fer du Jura (CJ), the railways of the canton of Jura in northern Switzerland, is an 85 km (53 mi) long rail network of which 74 km (46 mi) is metre gauge, the remaining 11 km (6.8 mi) being standard gauge. It connects La Chaux-de-Fonds to Glovelier and Tramelan, both via Le Noirmont. Other narrow-gauge railway lines in the Swiss Jura include the La Chaux-de-Fonds–Les Ponts-de-Martel railway and Le Locle–Les Brenets line, both operated by TransN.

In the canton of Vaud, metre-gauge railways include the Chemin de fer Nyon-St-Cergue-Morez, the Chemin de fer Bière-Apples-Morges, the Chemin de fer Yverdon–Ste-Croix, the Chemin de fer Bex–Villars–Bretaye and the Chemin de fer Lausanne–Echallens–Bercher, as well as part of the longer Montreux–Lenk im Simmental line. Another railway line links Aigle with Champéry in the canton of Valais.

The Chemin de fer Martigny–Châtelard (MC) is 19 km (12 mi) long, with one rack railway section, in the canton of Valais. It runs from Martigny to Le Châtelard VS and connects with the Saint-Gervais–Vallorcine railway in France, the joint services being marketed as Mont-Blanc Express.

The Gornergrat Bahn climbs for 9 km (5.6 mi) from an elevation of 1,600 m (5,200 ft) near Zermatt station of the Zermatt RR to a 3,000 m (9,800 ft) high top station on the shoulder of the Monte Rosa Mountain. The entire route is a rack-and-pinion railway.

Ticino

The Ferrovia Lugano–Ponte Tresa (FLP), in canton Ticino, runs 12.3 km (7.6 mi) from Lugano to Ponte Tresa. The Monte Generoso railway (MG) operates between Capolago-Riva San Vitale (or Capolago Lago) and Monte Generoso.

Other

The Aargau Verkehr company operates two unconnected narrow gauge lines. The Menziken–Aarau–Schöftland line operates in the centre of the canton of Aargau as S14 service of the Aargau S-Bahn. The Bremgarten–Dietikon line operates across the border between the canton of Zürich and eastern Aargau as S17 service of the Zürich S-Bahn. The two lines have a total length of 51 kilometres (32 mi).

The Forch railway (German: Forchbahn, FB) is a meter gauge railway in the canton of Zürich that operates from Zürich Stadelhofen FB to Esslingen as S18 service of the Zürich S-Bahn. It uses the Zürich tram tracks between Stadelhofen and Zürich Rehalp, while operating on its own tracks outside of the city of Zürich. It is owned and operated by the Forchbahn AG.

Regionalverkehr Bern-Solothurn (RBS) operates three services for Bern S-Bahn on meter gauge lines: the S7 on the Worb Dorf–Worblaufen line, the S8 on the Solothurn–Worblaufen line and the S9 on the Zollikofen–Bern line.

Aare Seeland mobil (ASM) operates two S-Bahn services (S11, S12) on three meter gauge railway lines in the cantons of Bern and Solothurn: the Langenthal–Oensingen, the Langenthal–Melchnau and the Solothurn–Niederbipp lines.

The Waldenburg railway links Liestal with Waldenburg in the canton of Basel-Landschaft. Since 2016, it is operated by line 19 of Baselland Transport (BLT).

Narrow-gauge links to adjacent countries

• France – 1,000 mm / 3 ft 3+3⁄8 in metre gauge:
  • Martigny–Châtelard Railway / Saint-Gervais–Vallorcine railway (Mont-Blanc Express), partially a rack railway
• Italy – 1,000 mm / 3 ft 3+3⁄8 in metre gauge:
  • Bernina Railway (Rhaetian Railway), break-of-gauge and voltage change at Tirano
  • Domodossola–Locarno railway line (FART (ferrovie autolinee regionali ticinesi)) through the Swiss Centovalli and Italian Valle Vigezzo
• Austria – 750 mm / 2 ft 5+1⁄2 in gauge:
  • The International Rhine Regulation Railway, a former industrial railway (now a heritage railway) along and across the Alpine Rhine

Urban rail

Urban rail transit in Switzerland includes trams and light rail in several cities, commuter rail systems centered around cities (known as S-Bahn or RER), a single, small metro system and funiculars. Plans for a rapid transit in Zürich, Switzerland's largest city, were discontinued after a referendum.

Trams

There are trams operating on nine systems in seven Swiss cities. Street-running tramways are nearly all 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in). The Chemin de fer Bex–Villars–Bretaye (BVB) in Bex is more of a mixed interurban light rail line connected to a rack railway but it does have some street running portions, particularly in Bex where the BVB operates along the right of way of a tramway system originally built in the 1890s. Also the Trogenerbahn operated by Appenzell Railways (AB) operates on streets in the city of St. Gallen as well as the Frauenfeld–Wil-Bahn (FWB) in the city of Frauenfeld the Forchbahn in the city of Zürich and the Chur–Arosa-Bahn in the city of Chur.

S-Bahn

In the German-speaking part of Switzerland, suburban and regional commuter rail service is today known as S-Bahn. Clock-face scheduling in commuter rail has been first put in place on the line Worb Dorf–Worblaufen near Bern in 1964. In 1968, the Goldcoast Express on the right side of Lake Zürich followed. In 1982, clock-face scheduling was introduced all over Switzerland. The term S-Bahn has been used since 1990 for the Zürich S-Bahn, since 1995 for Bern S-Bahn and since 1997 for the Basel S-Bahn. Other S-Bahn services include the Lucerne S-Bahn, St. Gallen S-Bahn, Aargau S-Bahn, Chur S-Bahn and Schaffhausen S-Bahn. Additionally, other terms for commuter rail are in use, like Stadtbahn Zug. S-Bahn services are typically numbered and use the S-prefix (S#).

Commuter rail networks in the French-speaking part are generally known as RER (Réseau Express Régional), such as around Fribourg (RER Fribourg), Lausanne (RER Vaud) and Porrentruy (RER Jura), whereas in the region of Geneva the term is Léman Express. In the canton of Valais, RegionAlps offers S-Bahn services, while in the canton of Ticino such services are provided by TILO.

The commuter rail networks of Zürich, Basel, St. Gallen, Geneva, Schaffhausen and Ticino provide also cross-border transportation services into Austria, Germany, France and Italy, respectively. The Austrian Vorarlberg S-Bahn operates services with Swiss border stations as their terminus, with one service operating through Liechtenstein. The Italian Milan S Lines includes a service operating until the Swiss border station of Chiasso. The Bodensee S-Bahn groups several S-Bahn services around Lake Constance (Bodensee) in Switzerland, Austria and Germany.

Funiculars

Tourist railways

• List of heritage railways and funiculars in Switzerland
• List of mountain railways in Switzerland
• Panorama Express

High-speed railways

Train categories

Rolling stock

Naming

Since the naming of the Class Ae 6/6 locomotives (nicknamed Kantonslokomotiven, lit. 'cantonal locomotives'), it has become common customs for Swiss railway companies to name their locomotives and multiple units (MU). Rolling stock named after cantons or municipalities often also bear the respective coat of arms. The following is a list of locomotives and MUs of the three main operators that are named.

Integration of services

Between rail services

Services on the Swiss railway network are integrated with each other and with other modes of public transport, such as local railways, buses, boats/ferries and cable transports, often either in direct proximity or short walking distance, to minimise transfer times. Unlike its European neighbours, Switzerland has not developed a comprehensive high-speed rail network, with the running speed on high-speed lines, the Rothrist–Mattstetten line and Gotthard Base Tunnel, being 200 km/h (120 mph) and 230 km/h (140 mph), respectively. Instead the priority is not so much the speeding up of trains between cities, but the reduction of connection times through the nodal system. Journey times on main lines between hubs are multiples of 15 minutes so that on the hour or half-hour all trains stand in the nodal stations at the same time, thus minimising connection times. Indeed, the above-mentioned Rothrist–Mattstetten line reduces journey times from Bern to Zurich HB from 72 minutes to 57 minutes, in keeping with the clock-face scheduling.

Between modes of public transport

• Rail timetables are integrated with the extensive network of postal buses (branded as PostBus, French: CarPostal, German: PostAuto, Italian: AutoPostale), which serve both plain and high mountain villages, as well as with many other Swiss bus companies. For example, on postal bus line 12.381 the 10:35 from the mountain village of Les Haudères is planned to arrive in the regional city of Sion at 11:20 where a train departs the station (located next to the bus station) at 11:24 for Visp. Indeed, it is a familiar sight to for the postal cars to be already lined up outside the station for the arriving train. From this perspective, the Swiss rail network functions as the core of a wider public transport network.

Other modes of transport concerned by the integrated timetable are:

• Boats/ferries: for example at Capolago Lago (SNL), Flüelen (SGV), Kreuzlingen Hafen (URh), Lucerne (SGV), Montreux (CGN), Rapperswil (ZSG), Romanshorn, Thun
• Cable cars: for instance at Fiesch, Jakobsbad, Le Châble VS, Unterterzen, Wasserauen
• Funiculars (for example at Cossonay-Penthalaz, Linthal Braunwaldbahn, Lugano Paradiso, Vevey-Funi, Wabern bei Bern) and other mountain railways (for instance at Alpnachstad, Arth-Goldau, Göschenen)
• Metro: at Lausanne, Lausanne-Flon, Renens
• Heritage railways: at Bauma, Etzwilen, Hinwil

Links to airports

• The two main airports, Zürich Airport and Geneva Airport, both have their own subterranean railway stations, Zürich Airport (Zürich Flughafen) and Geneva Airport (Genève Aeroport). Zürich Airport also has tram links to the city. Other airports have bus links to/from nearby railway stations: EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg with Basel SBB, Bern Airport with Belp, St. Gallen–Altenrhein Airport with Rheineck and Sion Airport with Sion. Lugano Airport is close to Agno.

Integration with private transport

• About 600 railway stations feature park and ride, known as P+Rail in Switzerland, which allows commuting partly by private and partly by public transport. Mobility is a cooperative for car sharing. Mobility cars are available at many railway stations.
• There are also car and truck transportation services (German: Autoverlad) on some lines, mainly in mountainous areas.
• Some trains feature an area (indicated either near or on the doors), or even an entire railroad car (e.g. trains on the Altstätten–Gais railway line), for transportation of bicycles. Most railway stations have a bicycle parking and/or bicycle parking station. Some railway stations also offer bicycle washing and repair services.

Costs and subsidies

Although public investment is positively correlated with a given railway system's performance, the European Railway Performance Index finds differences in the value that countries receive in return for their public cost. The 2017 Index found Switzerland captures high value for money relative to the average ratio of performance to cost among European countries.

Passenger transport

In 2012, the total costs for passenger transport on Swiss railway network was CHF 8.88 billion, of which CHF 4.46 billion (50%) were due to infrastructure costs, CHF 3.98 billion (45%) were costs of transportation means, CHF 427 million due to environmental and health costs, and CHF 25 million due to accidents.

CHF 4.28 billion, or 48.2%, were paid by passengers, and CHF 4.15 billion (or 47%) came from rail subsidies provided by federal, cantonal, and municipal contributions. CHF 426 million (or 4.8%) were contributed by the common weal (accident and health insurances, environmental funds etc.).

Freight transport

In 2012, the total costs for freight transport on Swiss railway network was CHF 2.063 billion, of which CHF 779 million (37.8%) were due to infrastructure costs, CHF 900 million (43.6%) were costs of transportation means, CHF 59 million due to environmental and health costs, and CHF 325 million (15.8%) due to accidents.

CHF 1.058 billion, or 51.3%, were paid by customers, and CHF 122 million (5.9%) by transporting companies, while CHF 555 million (26.9%) were subsidised by federal, cantonal, and municipal contributions. CHF 328 millions (15.9%) were contributed by the common weal (accident and health insurances, environmental funds etc.).

Signaling

History

The construction and operation of Swiss railways during the 19th century was carried out by private railways. The first internal line (known as the Spanisch Brötli Bahn) was a 16 km (9.9 mi) line opened from Zürich to Baden in 1847, operated by the Swiss Northern Railway. By 1860 railways connected western and northeastern Switzerland but the Alps remained an insurmountable barrier for railways, which need low gradients. The first trans-alpine railway and north–south axis in Switzerland finally opened in 1882. It was the Gotthard Railway, with at its heart the Gotthard Tunnel, passing well below the Gotthard Pass. A second line was opened even lower under the Simplon Pass in 1906 (the Simplon Railway), and a third under the Lötschberg in 1913 (the Lötschberg Railway).

In 1901 the major railways were nationalised to form Swiss Federal Railways. During the first half of the 20th century they were electrified and slowly upgraded. After the Second World War rail rapidly lost its share of the rail market to road transport as car ownership rose and more roads were built. From 1970 the Federal Government has become more involved in upgrading the railways, especially in urban areas and on trunk routes under the Rail 2000 project. In addition, two major trans-alpine routes—the Gotthard Railway and the Lötschberg approach to the Simplon—were rebuilt under the NRLA project. As a consequence, two new flat routes through the Alps opened in the early 21st century: The Lötschberg Base Tunnel in 2007 and the Gotthard Base Tunnel in 2016.

Between 1869 and 1976, goods wagons were carried from Romanshorn station across Lake Constance using train ferries.