History of rail transport in Switzerland
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history of rail transport by country The history of rail transport began in the BCE times. It can be divided into several discrete periods defined by the principal means of track material and motive power used. Ancient systems The Post Track, a prehistoric causeway in the va ...
series.'' The construction and operation of
Swiss Swiss may refer to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina *Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses *Swiss-system tournament, in various games and sports *Swiss Internation ...
railways during the 19th century was carried out by private railways. The first internal line was a 16 km line opened from
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
to
Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
in 1847. By 1860 railways connected western and northeastern Switzerland. The first Alpine railway to be opened was under the
Gotthard Pass german: Gotthardpass , photo = File:Gotthardpass 2008.jpg , photo_caption = The area of the Gotthard Pass from the west , elevation_m = 2106 , elevation_ref = , traversed = National Road 2 Old paved road ( Tremola) Gotthard Rail Tunnel Go ...
in 1882. A second alpine line was opened under the
Simplon Pass The Simplon Pass (french: Col du Simplon; german: Simplonpass; it, Passo del Sempione, Lombard: ''Pass del Sempiün'') () is a high mountain pass between the Pennine Alps and the Lepontine Alps in Switzerland. It connects Brig in the canto ...
in 1906. In 1901, the major railways were nationalised to form
Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (german: link=no, Schweizerische Bundesbahnen, ''SBB''; french: link=no, Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses, ''CFF''; it, Ferrovie federali svizzere, ''FFS'') is the national railway company of Switzerland. It is usuall ...
. During the first half of the twentieth century they were electrified and slowly upgraded. After the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, 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 Rail 2000 (German: ''Bahn 2000''; French: ''Rail 2000'', Italian: ''Ferrovia 2000'') is a large-scale project of the Swiss Federal Railways (SFR) established in 1987 to improve the quality of the Swiss rail network for the New millennium. It ...
project. In addition, two major trans-alpine routes — the Gotthard Railway and the
Lötschberg The Lötschberg is an Alpine mountain massif and usually associated with a major, historically important transit axis of the Alps in Switzerland with, at its core, the Lötschen Pass (german: Lötschenpass, Swiss German: ''Lötschepass''). The m ...
approach to the
Simplon Tunnel , it, Galleria del Sempione , line = Simplon line, (Lötschberg railway line) , location = Traversing the Lepontine Alps between Switzerland and Italy , coordinates = – , system = Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF  ...
— are being rebuilt under the
NRLA The New Railway Link through the Alps (NRLA; german: Neue Eisenbahn-Alpentransversale, NEAT, french: nouvelle ligne ferroviaire à travers les Alpes, NLFA, it, Nuova ferrovia transalpina, NFTA), is a Swiss construction project for faster north ...
project.


Origins

In 1833 the Grand Duchy of Baden developed plans for a railway connecting the cities
Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...
and
Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...
with
Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...
and onwards to
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
and
Northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative regions ...
. The first line in Switzerland, the extension of the French Strasbourg–Basel Railway ( French: ''Chemin de fer de Strasbourg à Bâle'') from
Mulhouse Mulhouse (; Alsatian language, Alsatian: or , ; ; meaning ''Mill (grinding), mill house'') is a city of the Haut-Rhin Departments of France, department, in the Grand Est Regions of France, region, eastern France, close to the France–Switzerl ...
to Basel, reached a temporary station outside Basel's walls on 15 June 1844 and the permanent station on 11 December 1845. (The
Chemins de fer de l'Est The Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Est (CF de l'Est), often referred to simply as the Est company, was an early French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which ...
took over the company in 1854.) Addressing Swiss worries over French influence due to a locomotives name
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
, the Alsacians have purchased a separate locomotive called ''City of Basel ('') for their access to Basel. The
Grand Duchy of Baden State Railway The Grand Duchy of Baden was an independent state in what is now southwestern Germany until the creation of the German Empire in 1871. It had its own state-owned railway company, the Grand Duchy of Baden State Railways (''Großherzoglich Badische ...
's Rhine Valley Line reached the original Basel Baden railway station in 1855. Despite constant discussion, it took some time before these lines were extended into Switzerland.


Early railways

The first internal Swiss line, the 16 km long Swiss Northern Railway (
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...
: ''Schweizerische Nordbahn'', SNB) opened from
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
to
Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...
in 1847. Private companies - led by Swiss entrepreneurs, industrialists and bankers - built the next wave of railways. In 1850 the
Swiss Federal Council The Federal Council (german: Bundesrat; french: Conseil fédéral; it, Consiglio federale; rm, Cussegl federal) is the executive body of the federal government of the Swiss Confederation and serves as the collective head of state and governme ...
invited two British engineers,
Robert Stephenson Robert Stephenson FRS HFRSE FRSA DCL (16 October 1803 – 12 October 1859) was an English civil engineer and designer of locomotives. The only son of George Stephenson, the "Father of Railways", he built on the achievements of his father ...
and Henry Swinburne, to draw up plans for a railway network for the Swiss Confederation. They proposed a 645 km network along the valleys, avoiding any
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...
crossings, all of which was eventually built. Although the
Constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of Legal entity, entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When ...
of 1848 gave the federal government powers in relation to railways, it initially decided to decentralise rail policy. The first Railway Act of 1852 gave responsibility for administering policy in relation to the construction and operation of railways to the cantons, including licensing of companies, coordination of lines, technical specifications and pricing policy. Railways were to be built by private limited-liability companies, with contributions to be provided by the municipalities and cantons that stood to benefit from projects. Despite the lack of overall planning and the rivalry among the companies, a rail network similar to that proposed by Stephenson and Swinburne soon formed in northern and western Switzerland, with the completion of a link from the French border in the far west near Geneva to the
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
n border in the far northeast at St. Margrethen on 10 December 1860. In 1853 the Swiss Central Railway (German: ''Schweizerische Centralbahn'', SCB) began to build the
Basel-Olten line The Hauenstein Railway is a major railway line in Switzerland connecting the cities of Basel and Olten. The original line was built between 1853 and 1858 under the Unterer Hauenstein Pass, an ancient pass through the Jura Mountains, including ...
through the Hauenstein pass, with branches from Olten to
Aarau Aarau (, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the capital of the northern Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Aargau. The List of towns in Switzerland, town is also the capital of the dis ...
,
Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
,
Bern german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese , neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen , website ...
and
Thun , neighboring_municipalities= Amsoldingen, Heiligenschwendi, Heimberg, Hilterfingen, Homberg, Schwendibach, Spiez, Steffisburg, Thierachern, Uetendorf, Zwieselberg , twintown = , website = www.thun.ch Thun (french: Thoune) ...
and from
Herzogenbuchsee Herzogenbuchsee is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. The population is 7055 (2011), counting the villages in the Oberaargau. The traditional name was ''Buchsi''. History Herzogenb ...
to Solothurn and Biel. At the same time the Swiss Northeastern Railway (German: ''Schweizerische Nordostbahn'', NOB) concentrated on eastern Switzerland in the cantons of
Zürich Zürich () is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zürich. It is located in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zürich. As of January 2020, the municipality has 43 ...
and
Thurgau Thurgau (; french: Thurgovie; it, Turgovia), anglicized as Thurgovia, more formally the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is part ...
; its network covered the lines from Zürich to
Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, ca ...
and to
Schaffhausen Schaffhausen (; gsw, Schafuuse; french: Schaffhouse; it, Sciaffusa; rm, Schaffusa; en, Shaffhouse) is a list of towns in Switzerland, town with historic roots, a municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in northern Switzerland, and the ...
and later to
Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
. The United Swiss Railways (VSB) built lines from
Winterthur , neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell , twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...
to
Rorschach Rorschach may refer to: * Hermann Rorschach, a Swiss psychiatrist ** Rorschach test, his psychological evaluation method involving inkblots * Rorschach (character), a character from the comics ''Watchmen'' * Rorschach (comic book), a 2020 comic * ...
and from
Wallisellen Wallisellen is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, and belongs to the Glatt Valley (German: ''Glattal''). History The first settlement at Wallisellen dates from 58 BC. The municipality Wallisellen ...
to
Rapperswil Rapperswil ( Swiss German: or ;Andres Kristol, ''Rapperswil SG (See)'' in: ''Dictionnaire toponymique des communes suisses – Lexikon der schweizerischen Gemeindenamen – Dizionario toponomastico dei comuni svizzeri (DTS, LSG)'', Centre de dia ...
,
Sargans Sargans is a municipality in the ''Wahlkreis'' (constituency) of Sarganserland in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Sargans is known for its castle, which dates from before the founding of the Swiss Confederation in 1291. Sargans was al ...
and
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
. There were contracts for sharing the interlinked VSB line between Weesen and
Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...
and the NOB line between
Ziegelbrücke Ziegelbrücke is a village in Switzerland. Ziegelbrücke is shared by the municipalities of Niederurnen in the canton of Glarus and Schänis in the canton of St. Gallen. Geography and political situation The village of Ziegelbrücke is divided ...
,
Näfels Näfels is a former municipality in the canton of Glarus in Switzerland. Effective from 1 January 2011, Näfels is part of the municipality of Glarus Nord. History Näfels is first mentioned in 1240 as ''Nevels''. In 1388, the Swiss Confederates ...
,
Glarus , neighboring_municipalities= Glarus Nord, Glarus Süd, Muotathal (SZ), Innerthal (SZ) , twintowns= Wiesbaden-Biebrich (Germany) } Glarus (; gsw, Glaris; french: Glaris; it, Glarona; rm, Glaruna) is the capital of the canton of Glarus ...
and Linthal. During the same period, railways were built in western Switzerland along
Lake Geneva , image = Lake Geneva by Sentinel-2.jpg , caption = Satellite image , image_bathymetry = , caption_bathymetry = , location = Switzerland, France , coords = , lake_type = Glacial lak ...
from
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
to
Lausanne , neighboring_municipalities= Bottens, Bretigny-sur-Morrens, Chavannes-près-Renens, Cheseaux-sur-Lausanne, Crissier, Cugy, Écublens, Épalinges, Évian-les-Bains (FR-74), Froideville, Jouxtens-Mézery, Le Mont-sur-Lausanne, Lugrin (FR-74), ...
and
Bex Bex (; german: Beis; frp, Bés) is a municipality in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, located in the district of Aigle. It is a few kilometers south of its sister town municipality of Aigle. History Bex is first mentioned in 574 as ''in Bacci ...
and from
Morges Morges (; la, Morgiis, plural, probably ablative, else dative; frp, Môrges) is a municipality in the Swiss canton of Vaud and the seat of the district of Morges. It is located on Lake Geneva. History Morges is first mentioned in 1288 as ' ...
to
Yverdon Yverdon-les-Bains () (called Eburodunum and Ebredunum during the Roman era) is a municipality in the district of Jura-Nord vaudois of the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district. The population of Yverdon-les-Bains, , was ...
. A steamship connected Geneva with the line from
Le Bouveret Le Bouveret () is a village in the commune of Port-Valais in the Swiss canton of Valais. Situated at the southernmost end of Lake Geneva and close to the French border, Le Bouveret is very much tourism-oriented with several amusement attractions ...
to
Martigny Martigny (; german: Martinach, ; la, Octodurum) is the capital city of the district of Martigny, canton of Valais, Switzerland. It lies at an elevation of , and its population is approximately 15000 inhabitants (''Martignerains'' or "Octodurie ...
. The main developer in the inner part of
Vaud Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
was the
West Switzerland Company The West Switzerland Company (french: Compagnie de l'Ouest-Suisse, OS) was a railway company in Switzerland, formed 1854 and absorbed into the Western Swiss Railway in 1872. The OS built a railway network in western Switzerland and connected with ...
( French: ''Compagnie de l'Ouest-Suisse'', OS) and in the Valais the Company of the Line of Italy (French: ''Compagnie de la Ligne d'Italie'', absorbed by the
Simplon Company The Compagnie de la Ligne d’Italie (Railway of Italy Company, ''LdI''), or Ligne d’Italie for short, was a former Swiss railway company that established in 1859. In 1874, the Ligne d'Italie became part of the Compagnie du Simplon (Simplon Compa ...
rench: ''Compagnie du Simplon''in 1874). The Jura–Neuchâtel Railway emerged from lines from
Le Locle Le Locle (; german: Luggli) is a Communes of Switzerland, municipality in the Canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. It is situated in the Jura Mountains, a few kilometers from the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds. It is the third smallest city in Switz ...
and
Les Verrières Les Verrières () is a municipality in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. History Les Verrières is first mentioned in 1344 as ''villa de Verreriis''. Jt was here that General Charles-Denis Bourbaki crossed the Swiss border with the rem ...
along
Lake Neuchâtel Lake Neuchâtel (french: Lac de Neuchâtel ; frp, Lèc de Nôchâtél; german: Neuenburgersee) is a lake primarily in Romandy, in the French-speaking part of Switzerland. The lake lies mainly in the canton of Neuchâtel, but is also shared by t ...
to
La Neuveville La Neuveville (; german: Neuenstadt) is a municipality in the Jura bernois administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland, located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura (''Jura Bernois''). History La Neuveville is first mention ...
. The
Canton of Fribourg The canton of Fribourg, also canton of Freiburg (french: Canton de Fribourg ; german: Kanton Freiburg ; frp, Canton de Fribôrg rm, Chantun Friburg it, Canton Friburgo) is located in western Switzerland. The canton is bilingual, with French ...
delayed the construction of the line from Bern to Lausanne in a bid to have it run through the city of
Fribourg , neighboring_municipalities= Düdingen, Givisiez, Granges-Paccot, Marly, Pierrafortscha, Sankt Ursen, Tafers, Villars-sur-Glâne , twintowns = Rueil-Malmaison (France) , website = www.ville-fribourg.ch , Location of , Location of () () o ...
rather than on flatter land further west; in 1857, the Swiss government, the canton of
Vaud Vaud ( ; french: (Canton de) Vaud, ; german: (Kanton) Waadt, or ), more formally the canton of Vaud, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of ten districts and its capital city is Lausanne. Its coat of arms b ...
and the
West Switzerland Company The West Switzerland Company (french: Compagnie de l'Ouest-Suisse, OS) was a railway company in Switzerland, formed 1854 and absorbed into the Western Swiss Railway in 1872. The OS built a railway network in western Switzerland and connected with ...
gave in, allowing construction to commence on the line, which opened in 1862. The
Canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...
attempted to make its own policy in relation to its railways. At the initiative of its Federal politician
Jakob Stämpfli Jakob Stämpfli (23 February 1820 – 15 May 1879) was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council (1854–1863). He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on 6 December 1854, and handed over office on 31 December 186 ...
the Swiss East–West Railway (German: ''Schweizerische Ostwestbahn'', OWB) started building a line in 1857 - to compete with the Swiss Central Railway - between
La Neuveville La Neuveville (; german: Neuenstadt) is a municipality in the Jura bernois administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland, located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura (''Jura Bernois''). History La Neuveville is first mention ...
(on
Lake Biel __NOTOC__ Lake Bienne or Lake Biel (french: Lac de Bienne ; german: Bielersee) is a lake in western Switzerland. Together with Lake Morat and Lake Neuchâtel, it is one of the three large lakes in the Jura region of Switzerland. It lies approxim ...
) and Zürich via Bern,
Langnau im Emmental Langnau im Emmental is a municipality in the administrative district of Emmental in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is situated in the upper Emmental between Bern and Lucerne. It has about 9,000 inhabitants and is the most important ...
, Luzern and
Zug , neighboring_municipalities = Cham, Baar, Walchwil, Steinhausen, Unterägeri , twintowns = Fürstenfeld (Austria), Kalesija (Bosnia-Herzegowina) Zug (Standard German: , Alemannic German: ; french: Zoug it, Zugo r ...
, but without raising sufficient finance to guarantee its completion. In June 1861 it went bankrupt; the Canton of Bern took over the completed section from La Neuveville and Langnau and incorporated it as the
Bern State Railway The Bernese State Railway (''Bernische Staatsbahn'', BSB) was a railway company in Switzerland. The BSB was owned by the Canton of Bern and was the first government-owned railway in Switzerland. History The BSB was established in 1861 from the B ...
(German: ''Bernische Staatsbahn'', BSB), which continued building the line to Lucerne. The missing section from Langnau to
Entlebuch Entlebuch is a municipality in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. It is the seat of the district of Entlebuch. The area has been designated a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO in 2001. History Entlebuch is first mentioned in 1157, as ''Entilibuoch' ...
and Lucerne was not completed until 1875. The concession for the Zürich–Lucerne line via
Affoltern am Albis Affoltern am Albis (abbreviated as ''Affoltern a.A.''; Swiss German: ''Affoltere'') is a town and a municipality in the district of Affoltern in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. History Affoltern is first mentioned in 1190 as ''Afiltre' ...
was taken over by the
Zürich–Zug–Lucerne Railway The Zürich–Zug–Luzern Railway (Zürich-Zug-Luzern-Bahn) is a former railway company that built railway lines in the Swiss cantons of Zürich, Zug and Lucerne from the 1860s. It was absorbed by the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) in 1902. Its l ...
(German: ''Zürich–Zug–Luzern-Bahn'', ZZL), a subsidiary of the NOB. Financial difficulties led to a series of mergers and increased foreign investment in the rail companies. French investment in Switzerland was also stimulated by an interest in Alpine crossings. Many of the original companies merged with the
Swiss Northeastern Railway The Swiss Northeastern Railway (''Schweizerische Nordostbahn''; NOB) was an early railway company in Switzerland. It also operated shipping on Lake Constance (''Bodensee'') and Lake Zürich. Until the merger of the Western Swiss Railways into the ...
(German: ''Schweizerische Nordostbahn'') and with the
United Swiss Railways The United Swiss Railways (''Vereinigten Schweizerbahnen''; VSB or V.S.B.) was a former railway company in Switzerland. It was the smallest of the five main railways that were nationalised from 1902 to form the Swiss Federal Railways. Foundatio ...
(German: ''Vereinigte Schweizerbahnen'', VSB) in the east and with the Jura–Simplon Railway (French: ''Compagnie du Jura–Simplon'', JS) in the west. Despite the financial difficulties, by 1860 a continuous line extended from Geneva to Lake Constance, and by 1870 other main routes were completed. Steamers connected to the railways across several major lakes:
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
,
Neuchâtel , neighboring_municipalities= Auvernier, Boudry, Chabrey (VD), Colombier, Cressier, Cudrefin (VD), Delley-Portalban (FR), Enges, Fenin-Vilars-Saules, Hauterive, Saint-Blaise, Savagnier , twintowns = Aarau (Switzerland), Besançon (France), ...
,
Thun , neighboring_municipalities= Amsoldingen, Heiligenschwendi, Heimberg, Hilterfingen, Homberg, Schwendibach, Spiez, Steffisburg, Thierachern, Uetendorf, Zwieselberg , twintown = , website = www.thun.ch Thun (french: Thoune) ...
,
Lucerne Lucerne ( , ; High Alemannic German, High Alemannic: ''Lozärn'') or Luzern ()Other languages: gsw, Lozärn, label=Lucerne German; it, Lucerna ; rm, Lucerna . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking po ...
, and Constance. Connections to the networks of neighboring countries occurred at
Romanshorn Romanshorn is a municipality in the district of Arbon in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History Romanshorn was probably settled in the 7th century, and is first mentioned in 779 as ''Rumanishorn'' in a land grant from Waldrata to the Abb ...
(by ferries to
Lindau Lindau (german: Lindau (Bodensee), ''Lindau am Bodensee''; ; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Lindou'') is a major Town#Germany, town and Lindau (island), island on the eastern side of Lake Constance (''Bodensee'' in German) in Bavaria, Ge ...
and
Friedrichshafen Friedrichshafen ( or ; Low Alemannic: ''Hafe'' or ''Fridrichshafe'') is a city on the northern shoreline of Lake Constance (the ''Bodensee'') in Southern Germany, near the borders of both Switzerland and Austria. It is the district capital (''Kre ...
), at Basel by rail to the
Baden Mainline The Baden main line (german: Badische Hauptbahn) is a German railway line that was built between 1840 and 1863. It runs through Baden, from Mannheim via Heidelberg, Karlsruhe, Offenburg, Freiburg, Basle, Waldshut-Tiengen, Waldshut, Schaffhausen an ...
and to the French
Chemins de fer de l'Est The Compagnie des chemins de fer de l'Est (CF de l'Est), often referred to simply as the Est company, was an early French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which ...
, at Schaffhausen to the Baden Mainline and at
Les Verrières Les Verrières () is a municipality in the canton of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. History Les Verrières is first mentioned in 1344 as ''villa de Verreriis''. Jt was here that General Charles-Denis Bourbaki crossed the Swiss border with the rem ...
to the line to Pontarlier and Paris.


1870–1902

The Franco-Prussian War (1870–71) showed up problems of the private railway to cope with the need to move troops quickly, leading to the second Railway Act of 1872. This transferred control of construction, operation, tariffs and accounting of the railways and the licensing of railway companies from the cantons to the federal government. The possibility of federal government nationalisation of the railways also became part of the political agenda. Johann Jakob Sulzer (1806–1883), a Democratic Party politician from
Winterthur , neighboring_municipalities = Brütten, Dinhard, Elsau, Hettlingen, Illnau-Effretikon, Kyburg, Lindau, Neftenbach, Oberembrach, Pfungen, Rickenbach, Schlatt, Seuzach, Wiesendangen, Zell , twintowns = Hall in Tirol (Austria), La ...
, founded the ''Lake Constance–Lake Geneva Railway'' (German: ''Bodensee-Genfersee-Bahn''), later renamed the
Swiss National Railway The Swiss National Railway (German: ''Schweizerische Nationalbahn'', SNB) was a railway company in Switzerland. The Swiss National Railway was created in 1875 from the merger of the two companies, the ''Winterthur–Zofingen Railway'' and the ''Zo ...
(German: ''Schweizerische Nationalbahn'', SNB) to overcome shortcomings of the existing railways in providing an adequate and co-ordinated network. It planned to build a line from Lake Constance and Singen to Lausanne via Winterthur,
Aargau Aargau, more formally the Canton of Aargau (german: Kanton Aargau; rm, Chantun Argovia; french: Canton d'Argovie; it, Canton Argovia), is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eleven districts and its capita ...
,
Solothurn Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
,
Lyss Lyss () is a municipality in the Seeland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. On 1 January 2011, the former municipality of Busswil bei Büren was merged with Lyss.Murten Murten (German language, German) or Morat (French language, French, ; frp, Morât ) is a bilingual Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality and a city in the See (district of Fribourg), See district of the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Fr ...
and Payerne. Construction started in 1875 but it went bankrupt in 1878 and its assets were acquired by the NOB and SCB.


Alpine railways

Before the construction of the Gotthard Railway there were no north-south rail connections to Italy. The railroad lines ended at the foot of the Alps - the VSB reached
Chur , neighboring_municipalities= Arosa, Churwalden, Tschiertschen-Praden, Domat/Ems, Felsberg, Malix, Trimmis, Untervaz, Pfäfers , twintowns = Bad Homburg (Germany), Cabourg (France), Mayrhofen (Austria), Mondorf-les-Bains (Luxe ...
in 1858, the SCB reached Lucerne and Thun in 1859, and in 1878 the
Simplon Railway The Simplon Railway is a line that links Lausanne in Switzerland and Domodossola in Italy, via Brig. The -long Simplon Tunnel (opened in 1906) is a major part of it. The line between Lausanne and Vallorbe is sometimes considered to form part of th ...
(part of the
Western Switzerland–Simplon Company The Western Switzerland Railways (''Chemins de fer de la Suisse Occidentale'', shortened to ''Suisse-Occidentale''; SO or S-O), were initially a joint operation of three Swiss railway companies, but these companies merged on 1 January 1872. The co ...
from 1881) reached
Brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the ...
. The Swiss railway companies and regions competed to build a railway though various Swiss Alpine passes: the Lukmanier, the
Splügen Splügen ( Romansh: ''Spleia'', Italian: ''Spluga'') is a former municipality in the Viamala Region in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. On 1 January 2006 Splügen incorporated its neighbouring municipality of Medels im Rheinwald. On 1 January ...
, the Gotthard and the Simplon. In view of the completion of the Brenner Railway to the east in 1867 and the commencement of construction of the
Fréjus railway line Fréjus (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Var (department), Var Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region in Southeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 54,458. It neighb ...
in 1857 (completed in 1871) in the west, it was decided to build the Gotthard railway and contracts were signed with Swiss, German and Italian contractors in 1869. Despite financial difficulties the line was opened in 1882. In 1878, the Swiss approved in a referendum federal subsidies for an eastern and a western Alpine rail crossing. In 1913 a western Alps was completed, the
Lötschberg railway line The Lötschberg is an Alpine mountain massif and usually associated with a major, historically important transit axis of the Alps in Switzerland with, at its core, the Lötschen Pass (german: Lötschenpass, Swiss German: ''Lötschepass''). The mou ...
, but it was not a federal project, but instead it was an initiative of the
canton of Bern The canton of Bern or Berne (german: Kanton Bern; rm, Chantun Berna; french: canton de Berne; it, Canton Berna) is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. Its capital city, Bern, is also the ''de facto'' capital of Switzerland. ...
. No eastern rail crossing has ever been built. Instead the
Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the Rh ...
(RhB) opened the
Albula line The Albula Railway (german: Albulalinie; it, Linea dell'Albula; rm, Lingia da l'Alvra) is a single track metre gauge railway line forming part of the so-called core network of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB), in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerlan ...
in 1903 and the
Bernina Railway The Bernina Railway (german: Berninalinie; it, Linea del Bernina; rm, Lingia dal Bernina) is a single-track railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB). It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the canton of Graubünden, Switze ...
completed the
Bernina line The Bernina Railway (german: Berninalinie; it, Linea del Bernina; rm, Lingia dal Bernina) is a single-track railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB). It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the canton of Graubünden, Switz ...
in 1910, providing a link to Italy. These lines were initially built for tourists, but they were later also used for freight.


Branch lines

In the 1870s, branch lines began to be built. Two-thirds of them were built as narrow gauge lines to reduce costs. Fifty branch lines were built in the period from 1874 to 1877, including the Gäu Railway (German: ''Gäubahn'') between Solothurn and Olten (completed in 1876) and the
Broye The Broye (; frp, Brouye''Dictionnaire-Dikchenéro: Français-Patois/Patê-Franché''. Société cantonale des patoisans fribourgeois. Fribourg: 2013. p. 87 ) is a 68 km long river, in the cantons of Fribourg and Vaud, in Switzerland. It ha ...
valley lines near Freiburg (1877), both originally planned by the SNB. Also built during this period were the Emmental railway (German: ''Emmentalbahn'') from Solothurn to Burgdorf and
Langnau im Emmental Langnau im Emmental is a municipality in the administrative district of Emmental in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is situated in the upper Emmental between Bern and Lucerne. It has about 9,000 inhabitants and is the most important ...
(opened 1875-81) and the
Wädenswil–Einsiedeln railway The Wädenswil–Einsiedeln railway is a largely single-track standard-gauge line in Switzerland. It was built by the ''Wädenswil-Einsiedeln-Bahn'' and is now owned by the Südostbahn, Schweizerischen Südostbahn (SOB). The line between and is ...
("pilgrim railway", opened 1877). Also opened between 1874 and 1881 was the
Aargau Southern Railway Aargau Southern Railway (german: Aargauische Südbahn) is a former railway company in Switzerland. Between 1873 and 1882, the Schweizerische Centralbahn (SCB) and the Schweizerische Nordostbahn (NOB) jointly built a connecting line to the Gotth ...
, from
Rupperswil Rupperswil is a municipality in the district of Lenzburg in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. History A partially preserved Roman era tile kiln from the 2nd Century was discovered in 1911. There is also evidence of the emergence of a late ...
to
Rotkreuz Risch is a municipality in the canton of Zug in Switzerland. It is also promoted as Risch-Rotkreuz. Four villages (Rotkreuz, Risch, Buonas and Holzhäusern) belong to the municipality ''Risch''. On 24 November 2007 it was decided to promote the ...
, which later became a freight feeder line to the Gotthard railway. The Lake Constance–Toggenburg Railway (from Romanshorn to
Nesslau Nesslau is a municipality in the Toggenburg district of the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. The current municipality was formed in 2013 and includes the villages of Nesslau, Krummenau and Stein. History The area was incorporated into the ...
and Swiss Southeastern Railway (German: ''Schweizerische Südostbahn'') connected the east-central to southern Switzerland. The Railway Act of 1852 mandated . The reform of 1872 allowed local and mountain railways to be built with different gauges. The Swiss Company for Local Railways planned a narrow gauge network in the Alpine region, but only succeeded in building the
Appenzeller Bahn Appenzell Railways (german: Appenzeller Bahnen, AB) is a Swiss railway company with headquarters in Herisau. It operates a network of railways in the cantons of Appenzell Innerrhoden, Appenzell Ausserrhoden, St. Gallen and Thurgau. History The o ...
( Appenzell Railway) because of financial problems. In the Jura region of the Canton of Bern, the
Jura Bernois Railway The Bernese Jura Railway (''Chemins de fer du Jura bernois'', abbreviated ''Jura bernois'', JB) was a railway company in Switzerland. The company was called the Jura–Bern–Luzern (''Jura–Bern–Lucerne'', JBL) from 1 July 1884. The Jura–Ber ...
(JB) constructed a railway with massive financial assistance from the Canton of Bern. Between 1873 and 1877, the Jura line with the main railway line between
Delle Delle () is a commune in the Territoire de Belfort department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in northeastern France. Delle is the last French town on the railway line from Belfort to Berne, in Switzerland. The railway station in Delle is served by ...
and Basel and the lines from Biel to
Sonceboz-Sombeval Sonceboz-Sombeval is a municipality in the Jura bernois administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura (''Jura Bernois''). History Sonceboz-Sombeval is first mentioned in 866 as ...
and
Delémont Delémont (; fc, D'lémont; german: Delsberg, ) is the capital of the Swiss canton of Jura. The city has approximately 12,000 inhabitants . History The area of the municipality was already settled in the middle Bronze Age. Fifteen urn buria ...
and
La Chaux-de-Fonds La Chaux-de-Fonds () is a Swiss city in the canton of Neuchâtel. It is located in the Jura mountains at an altitude of 1000 m, a few kilometers south of the French border. After Geneva, Lausanne and Fribourg, it is the fourth largest city l ...
were built. In the 1880s, narrow gauge lines were built to isolated factories and villages in Vaud and the Jura region. By 1880, railways had been built in the Alpine regions to a few valleys and tourist areas. In the Graubünden, the
Rhaetian Railway The Rhaetian Railway (german: Rhätische Bahn; it, Ferrovia retica; rm, Viafier retica), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the Rh ...
(RhB), founded in 1889, had developed lines by the outbreak of
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
along the valleys of the Hinterrhein,
Vorderrhein The Vorderrhein (German; English: ''Anterior Rhine''; Sursilvan: ; Sutsilvan: ''Ragn Anteriur''; Rumantsch Grischun, Vallader, and Puter: ''Rain Anteriur''; Surmiran: ''Ragn anteriour'') is one of the two sources of the Rhine. Its catchment ar ...
, the Albula, the
Engadin The Engadin or Engadine ( rm, ;This is the name in the two Romansh idioms that are spoken in the Engadin, Vallader and Puter, as well as in Sursilvan and Rumantsch Grischun. In Surmiran, the name is ''Nagiadegna'', and in Sutsilvan, it is ' ...
e and the
Poschiavo Poschiavo ( it, Poschiavo, lmo, Pusciaaf, german: Puschlav, rm, Puschlav) is a municipality in the Bernina Region in the canton of Grisons in Switzerland. History Poschiavo is first mentioned in 824 as ''in Postclave'' though this comes from ...
. In the
Bernese Oberland The Bernese Oberland ( en, Bernese Highlands, german: Berner Oberland; gsw, Bärner Oberland; french: Oberland bernois), the highest and southernmost part of the canton of Bern, is one of the canton's five administrative regions (in which context ...
, railways were built to connect to the tourist region around
Lake Thun Lake Thun (german: Thunersee) is an Alpine lake in the Bernese Oberland in Switzerland named after the city of Thun, on its northern shore. At in surface area, it is the largest Swiss lake entirely within a single canton. The lake was created af ...
. Narrow gauge lines were built in the western Alps, such as the
Montreux-Oberland Bernois The Montreux Oberland Bernois Railway (french: link=no, Chemin de fer Montreux Oberland Bernois, german: link=no, Montreux Berner Oberland Bahn, abbreviated MOB), is an electrified railway line that operates in southwest Switzerland. It is one o ...
railway (MOB), the
Furka Oberalp Bahn The Furka Oberalp Railway (german: link=no, Furka Oberalp Bahn) is a narrow gauge mountain railway in Switzerland with a gauge of . It runs in the Graubünden, Uri and Canton of Valais. Since January 1, 2003, it is part of the Matterhorn G ...
(FO) and the Gruyère-Fribourg-Morat Railway (GFM). The tourist-oriented Domodossola–Locarno line—also called the ''Centovalli'' (
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
for "100 valleys") railway—was completed in 1923, connecting
Ticino Ticino (), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino,, informally ''Canton Ticino'' ; lmo, Canton Tesin ; german: Kanton Tessin ; french: Canton du Tessin ; rm, Chantun dal Tessin . ...
and the
Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the cantons of Switzerland, 26 ...
via Italy.


Early twentieth century


Nationalisation

The 1872 Railway Act gave the federal government broad powers in the railway sector. In 1879 the federal government established a new Department of Post and Railways with powers over railways and the postal sector. The bankruptcy of several railway companies during the 1870s, rail strikes and opposition to foreign ownership of the railways led to support for the nationalisation of the railways. In 1891, the nationalisation of the SCB was rejected in a referendum, but it was approved by the Federal Council in 1897. A referendum in 1898 was strongly contested, obtaining the highest level of voting participation to that date and won a two-thirds majority. Between 1900 and 1909, the Swiss Confederation acquired the five big railway companies, Jura–Simplon Railway (JS, 937 km),
Swiss Northeastern Railway The Swiss Northeastern Railway (''Schweizerische Nordostbahn''; NOB) was an early railway company in Switzerland. It also operated shipping on Lake Constance (''Bodensee'') and Lake Zürich. Until the merger of the Western Swiss Railways into the ...
(NOB, 771 km), Swiss Central Railway (SCB, 398 km),
United Swiss Railways The United Swiss Railways (''Vereinigten Schweizerbahnen''; VSB or V.S.B.) was a former railway company in Switzerland. It was the smallest of the five main railways that were nationalised from 1902 to form the Swiss Federal Railways. Foundatio ...
(VSB, 269 km) and the Gotthard Railway (273 km), forming the Swiss Federal Railways (SFR). In 1903 the SBB network took over the metre gauge Brünig Railway (German: Brünigbahn) opened in 1888 and the Swiss shipping line on Lake Constance. It acquired another four small private railways between 1913 and 1948. The negotiated purchase price of more than Swiss Francs 1 billion was criticised, especially as the owners had stopped investing when the debate over nationalisation started. The cost of the nationalisation was not charged directly to the federal budget, but was instead a debt of the SFR. As a result of the high debt burden, the SBB was significantly impeded in its development of the railways until 1944 when it was relieved of the debt resulting from its nationalisation.


Modernisation

The majority of the railway network was single track and its equipment and rolling stock was mostly in poor condition and unable to cope with increasing traffic. The difficult financial situation during the first half of the 20th century limited the modernisation of the Swiss rail network. The main work carried out was electrification, duplication and safety improvements. Electrification started on an experimental basis in 1888 and was completed in 1960. It was accelerated as a result of coal shortages during the two world wars. Of particular note was the early electrification of the Bern-Lötschberg-Simplon line, which was opened in 1913 with single-phase operation. At the beginning of World War II, 77% of the Swiss rail network had been electrified, while other European railways had a level of electrification of 5%. The construction of tunnels shortened distances and improved gradients, allowing the improved handling of traffic growth. The Simplon tunnel between Brig and
Iselle Trasquera is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northwest of Verbania, in the Val Divedro, on the border with Switzerland. Trasquera bord ...
, Italy, was opened in 1906. The Mont-d'Or tunnel was opened between
Vallorbe Vallorbe () is a municipality in the district of Jura-Nord Vaudois in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. History Vallorbe is first mentioned in 1139 as ''de valle urbanensi''. In 1148 it was mentioned as ''de valle urbe''. Geography Vallorbe ...
and Frasne, France, in 1915 and formed part of the route of the
Orient Express The ''Orient Express'' was a long-distance passenger train service created in 1883 by the Belgian company ''Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits'' (CIWL) that operated until 2009. The train traveled the length of continental Europe and int ...
between
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
from 1919 to 1962. The Hauenstein base tunnel was opened between Olten and Basel in 1916.


Private railways

Private railways were built to connect cities with suburbs, beginning with the metre gauge Bern-Muri-Worb Railway opened in 1898, now part of Bern-Solothurn Regional Transport. Additional standard gauge suburban lines were built to connect Bern with Thun via the Gürbe Valley (the Gürbe Valley Railway) and with
Schwarzenburg Schwarzenburg is a municipality in the district of Bern-Mittelland in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It was created on 1 January 2011 through the merger of the municipalities of Wahlern and Albligen. History Albligen Albligen is first mentio ...
and the metre gauge lines were extended to
Zollikofen Zollikofen is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district in the Swiss canton of Bern. It is a suburb of the city of Bern. It is home to the Swiss College of Agriculture (SHL). Geography Zollikofen has an area of . Of t ...
and
Solothurn Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
. The
Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
of the 1930s hit the private railways hard, leading to operating deficits which prevented the renewal of equipment and rolling stock. Under the 1939 Private Assistance Act, the federal government provided financial support to the private railways in return for technical renewal and electrification and the reorganization of the private railways into regional networks.


Post World War II

After years of heavy investment in roads in the postwar years, the share of rail in the total passenger market in Switzerland had been significantly reduced by the end of the 1960s. At this time, Swiss Federal Railways decided that changes were necessary to increase rail patronage. More trains were operated in order to increase frequencies; this led to a 75% increase in passengers between 1971 and 1983 on the Bern–Zürich route. In the 1970s, the Swiss government and SFR decided to make further improvements in rail services. In 1972, the SFR introduce a regular interval timetable (German: ''Taktfahrplan''). Under this timetable, trains arrive and leave each station at the same minute past every hour. Services at Zurich station were reorganised so that trains arrived on each line before the hour or half-hour and left after the hour or half-hour, making it easier to change to trains on other lines.


Rail 2000

In the late 1960s, the SFR developed a proposal for a new east-west trunkline (German: ''Haupttransversale'', NHT). This was considered by the ''Swiss Transport Commission'' (German: ''Schweizerischen Gesamtverkehrskommission'', GVK). In 1977, after almost six years work, the GVK submitted a 400-page report, which recommended the construction of a new railway between
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
and
Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, ca ...
and between Basel and Olten. On these routes, a total of 120 kilometres of new line would allow operation of trains at up to 200 kilometres per hour, similar to the French
TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
s.Kräuchi (2004), p12Kräuchi (2004), p13 A Federal Government committee supported SFR's proposal but considered that investment should be initially concentrated on the sections of route between Basel, Olten and Bern. This proposal was widely seen as too narrow in its benefits and in mid 1984 the SFR established an expert group under the name
Rail 2000 Rail 2000 (German: ''Bahn 2000''; French: ''Rail 2000'', Italian: ''Ferrovia 2000'') is a large-scale project of the Swiss Federal Railways (SFR) established in 1987 to improve the quality of the Swiss rail network for the New millennium. It ...
to develop a broader approach. This group developed a plan to improve rail transport throughout Switzerland based on the approach of co-ordinated regular interval trains. The federal parliament voted to approve ''Rail 2000'' in May 1986. In particular, it granted CHF 5.4 billion for the
Mattstetten–Rothrist new line The Mattstetten–Rothrist new line (''Neubaustrecke Mattstetten-Rothrist'') is Switzerland's first railway to reach speeds above 160 km/h (100mph) in regular operations, running between Mattstetten and Rothrist. It forms most of the Olten– ...
between Olten and Bern and for a connection from near
Herzogenbuchsee Herzogenbuchsee is a municipality in the Oberaargau administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. The population is 7055 (2011), counting the villages in the Oberaargau. The traditional name was ''Buchsi''. History Herzogenb ...
to
Solothurn Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...
. This was endorsed by a referendum in 1987 with a majority of 57.0%.Kräuchi (2004), p15


Zürich S-Bahn

After years of debate, a referendum of Zürich Canton agreed, on 29 November 1981, to the borrowing of CHF 520 million for the construction of the main lines for the
Zürich S-Bahn The Zürich S-Bahn (german: S-Bahn Zürich) system is a network of rail lines that has been incrementally expanded to cover the ZVV area, which comprises the entire canton of Zürich and portions of neighbouring cantons (Aargau, Glarus, ...
, based around a tunnel from the
Zürich main station , neighboring_municipalities = Adliswil, Dübendorf, Fällanden, Kilchberg, Maur, Oberengstringen, Opfikon, Regensdorf, Rümlang, Schlieren, Stallikon, Uitikon, Urdorf, Wallisellen, Zollikon , twintowns = Kunming, San Francisco Zürich ...
(connecting to the west, south and north) to Zürich Stadelhofen station (connecting to the southeast) and
Dietlikon Dietlikon is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, and belongs to the Glatt Valley (German: ''Glattal''). History Dietlikon is first mentioned in 1124 as ''Dietlinchoven''. Geography Dietlikon has an ...
(connecting to the northeast) and
Dübendorf Dübendorf is a municipality in the district of Uster in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. It is a suburb of Zürich in Switzerland with a population of about 30,000 (2021). It is the fourth largest city in the canton, after Zürich, Winter ...
(connecting to the east). On 27 May 1990, the S-Bahn was put into operation and then expanded in several phases into the current 380 kilometre long network.


Alpine crossings

In 1996, funding was approved for the upgrading of the two major alpine rail crossings, the Gotthard Railway, including the 57 km long
Gotthard Base Tunnel , rm, Tunnel da basa dal Sogn Gottard , image = 20141120 gotthard-basistunnel02-wikipedia-hannes-ortlieb.jpg , image_size = 250 , caption = Turnout at Faido multifunction station , line = Gotthard Line , location = Switzerland ( Uri, Grisons and ...
and the
Lötschberg Base Tunnel , line = Lötschberg Line , location = Traversing the Bernese Alps in Switzerland , coordinates = – , system = BLS, SBB CFF FFS , status = , start = Frutigen, canton of Bern, , end = Raro ...
on the approach to the
Simplon Tunnel , it, Galleria del Sempione , line = Simplon line, (Lötschberg railway line) , location = Traversing the Lepontine Alps between Switzerland and Italy , coordinates = – , system = Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF  ...
. The Lötschberg Base Tunnel was opened in 2007, but most of its second line has been indefinitely deferred. The Gotthard Base Tunnel was finally opened in 2016, after nearly two decades of work, making high-speed travel below the Alps a reality. Further south, on the Gotthard axis, the
Ceneri Base Tunnel The Ceneri Base Tunnel (CBT, it, Galleria di base del Monte Ceneri) is a Swiss railway base tunnel in the canton of Ticino. It passes under Monte Ceneri between Camorino in the Magadino Flat and Vezia near Lugano; it bypasses the former h ...
is slated to open in 2020.


See also

* List of railway companies in Switzerland *
List of heritage railways and funiculars in Switzerland This is a list of heritage railways in Switzerland. For convenience, the list includes any pre-World War II railway in the large sense of the term (either adhesion railway, rack railway or funicular) currently operated with at least several origi ...


Notes


References

* * {{Authority control