175 Years Swiss Railways
4 November 2022
At last, on 9 August 1847, 175 years ago, the first train carrying passengers ran on the Zurich-Baden railway (Canton Aargau) to the station in Baden.
The railway was named Spanisch-Brötli Bahn because, according to the story, a patisserie in Baden transported Spanish sandwiches quickly and fresh to Zurich.
Railway Station Baden, 1890. Photo: Staatsarchiv Baden.
Railway Station Olten, commemorated by Paul Gugelmann (1929-2022), presented by the city of Olten to the SBB in 2006 on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Olten station (1856).
Olten, railway station. In 1856, the ‘zero hour stone’ marked the starting point for measuring the railway in terms of travel time. In 1875, the metre replaced the hour and the foot. Since then, it has been the Km 39.292 stone, measured from Basel, the seat of the railway management at the time. The stone remained popularly known as the ‘Kilometre Null-Stein’. However, the correct name is ‘Stunde Null-Stein’. The cross is a symbol for the central position of the station in the railway network; the ‘O’ is the hour zero.
Switzerland was last in Western Europe in 1848. The United Kingdom already had 10,000 kilometres of railway, Germany around 6,000 kilometres, and Switzerland only 2 kilometres, from St Louis to Basel, in 1844, as the last track of the Strasbourg-Basel railway.
The French Railway Station, Basel, 1845. Source: Ein Jahrhundert Schweizer Bahnen 1847-1847. Jubiläumswerk des Eidgenössischen Post- und Eisenbahndepartementes in fünf Bänden. Bd. 1, Frauenfeld 1947. Photo: Wikipedia
SBB Railway Station Basel 2022
Disagreements between the sovereign cantons, the lack of coal for the steam locomotives, the absence of large urban agglomerations, and the mountainous landscape hampered construction.
However, after 1850, things moved quickly. The cantons had granted concessions to railway companies, and the federal government was not involved.
By 1864, Switzerland had about 1,400 kilometres of railway. These connected Geneva to Lake Constance, Basel to Chur (canton of Graubünden), and Bern to Brig (canton of Valais).
However, the Alps were still an obstacle. The railways stopped at Brig, Lucerne, Chur, and Thun. Credit Suisse was founded in 1856 to finance these ventures.
Tourism in the mountain regions led to further steps to build, continue or operate the mostly unprofitable railways. The travel agency Thomas Cook was one of the advocates.
Collection Museum zu Allerheiligen, Schaffhausen
The cantons, railway companies, and later, the federal government also relied on the experience and knowledge of foreign (mainly English, German, and Austrian) engineers.
Moreover, ETH Zurich, founded in 1855, and later EPFL in Lausanne, combined knowledge, talent, and experience within their institutions. The wonders and achievements of bridges, viaducts, and tunnels can be seen throughout the nation.
In 1872, the federal government made an important decision: the railways became a federal competence (after the cantons’ agreement).
This was partly motivated by lagging behind France (the Mont-Cenis tunnel of 1871) and Austria (the Brenner tunnel of 1864). The Gotthard base tunnel was the result in 1882.
The federal government took over (often bankrupt and unprofitable ) railway companies in 1898.
The Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (SBB)/ Chemins de fer fédéraux suisses (CFF)/ Ferrovie federali svizzere (FFS)/Viafiers federalas svizras (VFS) was established in 1902.
By 1914, all regions of the country were accessible by train, and the country had the densest railway network in Europe.
Bahnmuseum Albula, Bergün/Bravuogn
Three regional private initiatives are particularly worth mentioning. The initiative to set up the famous Rhaetian Railway was taken by Dutchman Willem-Jan Holsboer (1834-1898).
Oberalppas. End of the railway
Another feat is the railway station at 3,454 meters on the Jungfrau (4,158 meters). The initiator, Adolf Guyer-Zeller (1839-1899), began construction; his successors completed the project in 1912.
Dampflok.7, 1873. Photo: Rigibahnen AG
The 1871 rack railway on the Rigi by Niklaus Riggenbach (1817-1899) was also revolutionary
Another notable fact is the early use of electricity. Switzerland has no oil, coal, or gas reserves. It made the country innovative in the Industrial Revolution, even visionary from today’s perspective.
The first hydropower plants for generating electricity were commissioned in the late nineteenth century. Steam trains disappeared relatively quickly. Since 1967, all trains have been running on electricity.
Switzerland also had its railway barons. Martin Escher (1788-1870) and Alfred Escher (1819-1882) stand out in particular.
However, the people and the cantons always had the last say in various referendums. The last two major projects, the Gotthard Base Tunnel in 2016 and the Ceneri Base Tunnel in 2021, were completed on time or ahead of schedule and without EU interference or subsidies.
Some other projects cannot be realised for the time being due to external reasons. The Rotterdam/Hamburg to Milan/Genoa direct rail link and the environmentally friendly transport of freight traffic on trains (1992 Transitabkommen and 1994 NEAT project) have been stalled due to delays/delays in other (EU) countries and EU blockades.
Lötschenbergbahn Kandersteg (canton Bern)-Goppenstein (canton Wallis)
However, the SBB and Switzerland have every reason to be proud of the operation and service in all seasons under almost all conditions, even if the timetable no longer always runs like Swiss clockwork on wheels!
(Source and further information: Bahn Extra, 3/2022, 175 Jahre Eisenbahn in der Schweiz. Geramond, 2022).
Which railway company has a play garden for children on board?
Railway station Olten, Johann Jakob Speiser (1813-1856), founder of the Centralbahn.