Geneva railway station (), also known as Geneva Cornavin railway station, is Geneva's main

train station A train station, railroad station, or railway station is a railway facility where trains stop to load or unload passengers, freight, or both. It generally consists of at least one platform, one track, and a station building providing suc ...

, located in the centre of the city. The immediate area surrounding it is known as Cornavin; both names can be used interchangeably. The third largest train station in Switzerland by passenger numbers behind Zürich HB and Bern, with 156,000 users on average per working day in 2022, it sees over 720 train departures every day from its eight through-platforms. Platforms 7 and 8 have French and Swiss border controls. Long distance and regional express trains leave for France without making any stops in Switzerland. Another reason to separate the tracks is the different electrical standards of the relevant railway system on either side. The French system uses 25 kV at 50 Hz AC, but the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

system uses 15 kV AC at 16.7 Hz. The station connects to one Swiss mainline, the Lausanne–Geneva line, which links the city with the rest of Switzerland, to the east. Many long-distance trains from this line continue to and terminate at the

airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial Aviation, air transport. They usually consist of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surf ...

, 6 minutes away. There is also significant traffic to France westwards along the Lyon-Geneva line, which, for the first few kilometres, runs as a single track line alongside the double-track line to the airport. Traffic to France includes long-distance

TGV The TGV (; , , 'high-speed train') is France's intercity high-speed rail service. With commercial operating speeds of up to on the newer lines, the TGV was conceived at the same period as other technological projects such as the Ariane 1 rocke ...

s to Paris and southern France and regional trains to Lyon via Bellegarde. Cornavin is also the hub of the Léman Express network, with six routes in service. Many of these routes travel over the newly opened

CEVA Ceva, the ancient Ceba, is a small Italy, Italian town in the province of Cuneo, region of Piedmont, east of Cuneo. It lies on the right bank of the Tanaro River, Tanaro on a wedge of land between that river and the Cevetta stream. History In th ...

, which leads to .

Facilities

The facilities at the station include a police station, a pharmacy, several supermarkets, coffee shops, bakeries, food stands, clothing shops and multiple other establishments.

Nearby area features

Located directly outside the station are bus and tram stops for Transports Publics Genevois services to all over Geneva city, its canton and nearby French locales, a taxi rank, banks, cash machines, post offices, hotels, cinemas, jewellers, book shops, money exchange services, restaurants, bars, and fast food restaurants.

In popular culture

The station entrance and a platform is seen in ''

The Adventures of Tintin ''The Adventures of Tintin'' ( ) is a series of 24 comic albums created by Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Georges Remi, who wrote under the pen name Hergé. The series was one of the most popular European comics of the 20th century. By 2007, a c ...

'' comic ''

The Calculus Affair ''The Calculus Affair'' () is the eighteenth volume of ''The Adventures of Tintin'', the comics series by the Belgians, Belgian cartoonist Hergé. It was Serial (literature), serialised weekly in Belgium's ''Tintin (magazine), Tintin'' magazin ...

'' (1956).

Planned extension of the railway station

The

Swiss Federal Railways Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a State-owned enterprise, government institution, but since 1999 it has be ...

announced they would extend the railway station by constructing two new railway tracks. The station needs extending due to the planned increase in traffic over the coming years. The initial project cost 800 million

Swiss franc The Swiss franc, or simply the franc, is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein. It is also legal tender in the Italian exclave of Campione d'Italia which is surrounded by Swiss territory. The Swiss National Bank (SNB) iss ...

s and involved the demolition of 350 dwellings next to the station. A second project supported by residents of the neighborhood plans to build the two new tracks under the station with a total cost around 1.7 billion Swiss francs. The Swiss Federal Rail plans for the new extension to be completed by 2025. In April 2013, an initiative was launched to claim the extension under the station by the "Collectif 500", a neighborhood association.

Services

the following services stop at Geneva: * TGV Lyria: ** service every two hours to Paris-Lyon. ** three trains per day to . ** one daily round-trip between and Lausanne in the summer. *

EuroCity EuroCity (EC) is an international Train categories in Europe, train category and brand for European inter-city rail, inter-city trains that cross international borders and meet criteria covering comfort, speed, food service, and cleanliness. E ...

: four trains per day to , with one train continuing from Milano Centrale to . *

InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...

: hourly service between and via

Zürich Hauptbahnhof Zürich Hauptbahnhof, often shortened to Zürich HB or just HB, and known in English as Zurich Main Station, is the largest railway station in Switzerland and one of the busiest in Europe. It is a major railway hub, with services to and from a ...

. *

InterRegio The InterRegio, often shortened to IR, is a train categories in Europe, train category for mainly domestic train services in use in some European countries, with Swiss Federal Railways operating the most dense network. InterRegio trains are semi ...

: ** half-hourly service between Geneva Airport and . ** hourly service between Geneva Airport and . ** limited service between Geneva Airport and . * TER: service to , , , and . *

RegioExpress RegioExpress, commonly abbreviated to RE, is a Train categories in Europe, category of fast regional train service in Switzerland, run by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF FFS) or other railway companies (such as Treni Regionali Ticino Lombardia, ...

: half-hourly service (hourly on weekends) between and , and hourly service from St-Maurice to . On weekends, hourly service to Geneva Airport. * Léman Express: ** / / / : service every fifteen minutes between and Annemasse; from Annemasse every hour to , half-hourly or hourly service or service every two hours to and every two hours to . ** : half-hourly service to . ** : rush-hour service to Bellegarde.

PRODES EA 2035

As part of the strategic development program for rail infrastructure (PRODES), the Confederation and SBB are focusing on customer orientation and economical management of resources. By 2040, nearly two million people will travel by rail every day, 50% more than today. In rail freight, the Confederation also expects traffic to increase by around 45%. The Swiss rail network will have to continue to meet customer needs: interesting connections, punctual trains, affordable tickets. SBB is committed to the sustainable development of public transport and takes on this responsibility vis-à-vis Switzerland.

Predicted Services

The following services will stop from 2035 at Geneva: * TGV Lyria: ** Service every two hours to Paris-Lyon. *** Three trains per day starting at

Lausanne Lausanne ( , ; ; ) is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, city of the Swiss French-speaking Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud, in Switzerland. It is a hilly city situated on the shores of Lake Geneva, about halfway bet ...

. ** One daily round-trip to Marseille-Saint-Charles in the summer. *

: Eight trains per day to

Milano Centrale Milano Centrale () is the main railway station of the city of Milan, Italy, and is the second busiest railway station in Italy for passenger flow (after Roma Termini) and the largest railway station in Europe by volume. The station is a terminu ...

, with two trains continuing from Milano Centrale to Venezia Santa Lucia. *

: ** IC1: Hourly service between

Geneva Airport Geneva Airport – formerly and still unofficially known as Cointrin Airport – is an international airport of Geneva, the second most populous city in Switzerland. It is located northwest of the city centre. It surpassed the 15-million-pas ...

and

Romanshorn Romanshorn is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Arbon (district), Arbon in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History Romanshorn was probably settled in the 7th century, and is first menti ...

***IC11 (Sister Line): Hourly Service between Geneva Airport and

Lucerne Lucerne ( ) or Luzern ()Other languages: ; ; ; . is a city in central Switzerland, in the Languages of Switzerland, German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the Lucerne (district), di ...

** IC5: Half-hourly service between Geneva Airport and St. Gallen, with every other train continuing to St. Margrethen. *** IC51 (Sister Line): Hourly service between Geneva Airport and

Basel SBB Basel SBB railway station (, or in earlier times ''Centralbahnhof'' or ''Schweizer Bahnhof'') is the central railway station in the city of Basel, Switzerland. Opened in 1854, and completely rebuilt in 1900–1907, it is Europe's busiest intern ...

** IC9: Half-hourly service between Geneva Airport and

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 l ...

: ** IR18: Hourly service between

Annemasse Annemasse (; Franco-Provençal, Arpitan: ''Anemâsse'') is a Communes of France, commune in the Haute-Savoie Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in Eastern France. Even though it covers a relativ ...

and

Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...

** IR95: Half-Hourly between Geneva Airport and St-Maurice ** IR98: Hourly service between Annemasse and

Aigle Aigle ( French for "eagle", ; ) is a historic town and a municipality and the capital of the district of Aigle in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. The official language of Aigle is Swiss French. Geography Aigle lies at an elevation of a ...

* TER: Service to , , , and . * Léman Express: ** ///: service every fifteen minutes between and Annemasse; from Annemasse every hour to , and every two hours to and . ** : service to . ** : service to Bellegarde.

Gallery

File:Geneva Cornavin 2.JPG, Tracks 6 and 7

Notes

References

External links

*
Les principaux éléments historiques en relation avec CEVA
{{DEFAULTSORT:Geneve-Cornavin Railway Station Buildings and structures in Geneva Railway stations in the canton of Geneva Swiss Federal Railways stations Transport in Geneva Lyon–Geneva railway Railway stations in Switzerland opened in 1858