Zürich S-Bahn - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

S-Bahn Zürich

Network	Zürcher Verkehrsverbund
Lines	26
Track Length	380 km (236.1 mi)
Stations	171
Passengers/Day	382 526 (2008)
Operators	SBB, Thurbo THURBO THURBO is the corporate identity of a railway company in eastern Switzerland, owned by SBB-CFF-FFS and the canton of Thurgau.-Operations:... , SZU Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn The Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn – commonly abbreviated to SZU – is a railway company and transport network in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland... , SOB, FB Forchbahn The Forchbahn is a gauge narrow-gauge light railway in the canton of Zürich, linking central Zürich to the eastern suburbs near Esslingen via Forch. The name is often abbreviated to just FB, which also appears on the trains... , BDWM Bremgarten-Dietikon-Bahn The Bremgarten-Dietikon-Bahn is a privately owned railway company in Switzerland. Its railway line connects Wohlen and Bremgarten in the canton of Aargau with Dietikon in the canton of Zurich. The line has been modernised and is part of the S-Bahn Zürich network...
Carriages	DPZ Re 450, DTZ RABe 514 SBB-CFF-FFS RABe 514 The RABe 514 is a four-car double decker electrical multiple unit used by the Swiss Federal Railways SBB-CFF-FFS for the Zürich S-Bahn. It is part of the Siemens Desiro Double Deck product family... , RABDe 12/12 SBB-CFF-FFS RABDe 12/12 The RABDe 12/12 is a threepart Electric multiple unit used for commuter traffic by the Swiss Federal Railways SBB-CFF-FFS. The trains were put into service in the late 1960s and were in S-Bahn service around Zurich until December 2008.-Introduction:... , RBe 540 SBB-CFF-FFS RBe 540 Starting in 1959, the SBB-CFF-FFS put motored coaches of the type RBe 540 into service for push-pull operation on the Gotthard line...

The Zurich S-Bahn system is a network of rapid transit

Rapid transit

A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...

rail lines that has been incrementally expanded to cover the ZVV

ZVV

The ZVV is a public transportation network system, combining rail, bus, tram, trolleybus, lake boat and cable car services in the canton of Zürich as well as Rapperswil-Jona and Pfäffikon SZ.- History and network :Established in May 1990, it...

area, which comprises the entire canton of Zurich

Canton of Zürich

The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...

and portions of neighboring cantons (Aargau, Schaffhausen

Canton of Schaffhausen

The Canton of is a canton of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the canton is Schaffhausen.- History:Schaffhausen was a city-state in the Middle Ages, documented to have struck its own coins starting in 1045. It was then known as Villa Scafhusun. Around 1049 Count Eberhard von...

, Schwyz

Canton of Schwyz

Schwyz is a canton in central Switzerland between the Alps in the south, Lake Lucerne in the east and Lake Zurich in the north, centered around and named after the town of Schwyz....

, Thurgau and St. Gallen

Canton of St. Gallen

The Canton of St. Gallen is a canton of Switzerland. St. Gallen is located in the north east of Switzerland. It covers an area of 2,026 km², and has a population of . , the population included 97,461 foreigners, or about 20.9% of the total population. The capital is St. Gallen. Spelling...

), with a few lines extending into Germany.

The entire ZVV

ZVV

S-Bahn network went into operation in May 1990, although many of the lines were already in operation.

The lines of the S-Bahn network are numbered from S2 to S55, but the numbering is rather sporadic, with several missing numbers (e.g. S19, S20).

Unusual among rapid transit services, the Zürich S-Bahn provides first class commuter travel; about one-fifth of seats on each train are first class.

Current lines in operation

Effretikon - Zurich Airport

Zürich Airport railway station

Zurich Airport railway station is a railway station located underneath Check In 3, inside the terminal of Zurich Airport , in Kloten, Zurich, Switzerland....

- Zürich HB - Ziegelbrücke

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...

Between Pfäffikon SZ and Zurich Enge the S2 only stops in Richterswil, Wädenswil, Horgen and Thalwil

Previous lines in operation

S1 was the old number of line S21. It was renamed after the opening of the S1 line of the Lucerne-Zug network to avoid confusion.
An S31 used to exist. It used to run at least across the Seedamm
Seedamm
Seedamm is the partially artificial dam and bridge at the most narrow area of Lake Zurich, between Hurden and Rapperswil .- Geography and location :...

, between Rapperswil
Rapperswil
Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Busskirch, Curtiberg, Kempraten-Lenggis, Wagen, and Wurmsbach.-Today:On...

and Pfäffikon SZ.
S43 ran between Rüti and Wald (near Rapperswil) and had only three stations and was in fact a limited service of S26. It has been replaced by a bus route.

Projected future lines:
Several new lines are projected to open along with the third underground station at Zurich HB (2013).
Map

History

The first step in developing Zurich's rail system which eventually led to the establishment of the S-Bahn was the establishment of the so-called Gold Coast Express (German: Goldküstenexpress) on 26 May 1968 between Zürich Stadelhofen and Rapperswil

Rapperswil

via Meilen

Meilen

along the wealthy north shore of Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....

, popularly known as the Gold Coast. It operated a regular schedule every half hour, with the total journey time for the distance of 36 km reduced from the previous 60 to 40 minutes. After World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, there was a rapid expansion of commuting to Zurich from the former wine-growing villages along the railway line, which originally opened in 1894. As a result commuters complained that the trains were overcrowded, slow and often delayed.

The canton of Zurich

Canton of Zürich

began to develop a project to improve the railway in the 1950s. Because it was not used by either long-distance passenger or freight trains, improvements in local services were possible. Double track sections were built between Kuesnacht and Herrliberg

Herrliberg

Herrliberg is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- History :There are findings dating back to the Bronze age....

and between Stäfa

Stäfa

Stäfa is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-Geography:Stäfa has an area of . Of this area, 46.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 18.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 34% is settled and the remainder is non-productive...

and Uerikon

Uerikon

Uerikon is a village near Rapperswil, Switzerland.- Geography :Uerikon is located on the north bank of the Zürichsee in the Pfannenstiel region and is part of the political municipality of Stäfa...

, along with new stations. The main problem was finance. Development of the line would only serve local interests and would not lead to increased revenue for Swiss Federal Railways (SFR). At the time the canton and cities affected could not fund improvements to an SFR line, so the law was changed to allow local contributions.

The most striking feature of the improved railway was the three-car claret-coloured RABDe 12/12

SBB-CFF-FFS RABDe 12/12

The RABDe 12/12 is a threepart Electric multiple unit used for commuter traffic by the Swiss Federal Railways SBB-CFF-FFS. The trains were put into service in the late 1960s and were in S-Bahn service around Zurich until December 2008.-Introduction:...

electric multiple unit

Electric multiple unit

An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages, using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number of the carriages...

s. These had good acceleration and braking performance and immediately became known as "Mirages", after the jet fighters

Dassault Mirage III

The Mirage III is a supersonic fighter aircraft designed by Dassault Aviation during the late 1950s, and manufactured both in France and a number of other countries. It was a successful fighter aircraft, being sold to many air forces around the world and remaining in production for over a decade...

. The modern features of the Mirages included automatically closing doors, which allowed short stops at stations and a reduction in travel time.

U-bahn rejected

On 30 May 1959 some voters put two proposals to the Zurich City Council. The first would have allocated CHF 200,000 for a study on the construction of a two-line U-bahn (underground railway) with lines from Enge to Kloten

Kloten

-External links:* -References:...

and from Altstetten to Tiefenbrunnen

Zürich Tiefenbrunnen

Zürich Tiefenbrunnen is a railway station in the Swiss city of Zürich. It is situated on the shore of Lake Zurich, in the Seefeld quarter of the city....

; but it was opposed by the majority of the City Council and failed. The second motion proposed the establishment of a company to build and operate a Zurich U-Bahn. The city had already considered such a proposal and opposed it, on the basis that Zurich was not big enough for an underground railway, and it would cost too much. In a referendum on 14 February 1960, 69.8% of voters voted "no" to the proposal.

Following further work and the enactment of a new transport act, the regional public transport authorities presented a new proposal for a combined regional U-Bahn and S-Bahn system (that is, a suburban network based on the existing rail system) . From Zurich Airport, an U-Bahn line would run via Glattbrugg, Oerlikon

Zürich Oerlikon train station

, Hirschenwiesen, Central, Zurich Main Station, Stauffacher

Stauffacher, Zürich

Stauffacher is a tram junction in Aussersihl, Zurich, next to the St. Jakob church, situated along the Badenerstrasse between the Bäcker and the Stauffacher streets....

and Altstetten to Dietikon

Dietikon

. Much of the line would have run above ground. The second part of the proposal was the "Zürichberg

Zürichberg

The Zürichberg is a wooded hill rising to 679 metres , overlooking Lake Zurich and located immediately to the east of the City of Zurich in Switzerland, between the valleys of the Limmat and the Glatt rivers...

network", a line from Zurich main station via a new tunnel under the Zürichberg to Dietlikon. The proposed construction of an underground station in Museumstrasse on the north side of the main station was intended to ease the pressure on the main station. On 20 May 1973 this proposal was rejected in a referendum, with the "no" vote as high as in the previous referendum. At the referendum, little opposition had been expressed against the proposed S-Bahn lines.

Coordination and construction of the S-Bahn

Rail is a major element in Zurich's public transport system, and its upgrade required close collaboration between the Canton of Zurich and Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), the owner of most of the railways. The SBB had insufficient resources for a substantial upgrade of commuter services. On the other hand, the canton of Zurich could not fund an alternative transport network.

The first step towards cooperation came in 1978 with the establishment of a Transport Fund providing CHF 40 million annually for urban transport. The routes of today's S-Bahn were established in a debate in the cantonal Council on 19 June 1978. Alternative "eastern" and "western" options were discussed. Under the western option the northern end of the central tunnel from the main station would have connected with Oerlikon

Zürich Oerlikon train station

, while in the eastern option it would have tunneled under the Zürichberg and ended near Dietlikon

Dietlikon

Dietlikon is a municipality in the district of Bülach in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, and belongs to the Glatt Valley .-Geography:...

. The cantonal Council chose the eastern option by 85 votes to 36.

At a referendum on 29 November 1981, Zurich's voters approved by a two-thirds majority a loan of CHF 520 million for the construction of the core of the S-Bahn. The new route runs from the main station through the Hirschengraben tunnel to Stadelhofen, where the line branches off to Tiefenbrunnen, and continues through the Zürichberg Tunnel to Stettbach (new underground station) with a connection to the existing rail lines at Dietlikon and Dübendorf. A new underground station with four tracks was built under the existing central station (also known as the Museumstrasse station). The Stadelhofen station was transformed into an architecture award-winning station. Approach lines were also built to allow trains to run towards Altstetten. Simultaneously with the construction of the S-Bahn core line the Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn

Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn

The Sihltal Zürich Uetliberg Bahn – commonly abbreviated to SZU – is a railway company and transport network in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland...

was extended from its former terminal station at Selnau to the main station.

Opening and expansion

On 27 May 1990, the S-Bahn was brought into operation and the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund (Zurich Transport Network) began operations. For the first time, one could travel on trains, buses and trams with just one ticket. Despite "teething problems", passenger numbers increased rapidly. Since the opening of the S-Bahn, travel volumes have increased by about 60%. In several stages, S-Bahn services were expanded to a 380 km rail network, and peak hour express trains were added.

The first stage of the expansion addressed the chronic overcrowding of trains on the S12

S12 (ZVV)

route between Dietikon and Zurich, requiring improvements in the Limmat

Limmat

The Limmat is a river in Switzerland. It is the continuation of the Linth river, known as Limmat from the point of effluence from Lake Zurich, in the city of Zurich. From Zurich it flows in a northwesterly direction, after 35 km reaching the river Aare...

valley. The widening of the railway to four tracks between Dietikon and Killwangen allowed the separation of the S-Bahn from the long-distance and freight services. The new S3

S3 (ZVV)

service introduced as a result complemented the S12 service, to provide a train every 15 minutes on the route. At the same time the sections of the S9

S9 (ZVV)

route via Knonau

Knonau

Knonau is a municipality in the district of Affoltern in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Knonau is first mentioned in 1045 as Chnonowa. In 1223 it was mentioned as Knonowe.-Geography:...

were upgraded to allow services to be increased to each half hour. Services on the north side of Lake Zurich were increased with trains provided every 15 minutes by S6

S6 (ZVV)

, S7

S7 (ZVV)

The S7 is a regional railway line of the Zürich S-Bahn on the ZVV and is one of the network's trunk lines.- Route :...

and S16

S16 (ZVV)

services. A new station was opened at Glanzberg between Dietikon and Schlieren.

Under the second stage of expansion in December 2002, night trains were added to the S-Bahn. Since 2007, night trains provide a continuous 24 hour service from Friday morning until Sunday evening on some lines.

The third stage expansion was completed in 2007. On 12 December 2004 (coinciding with the completion of the first stage of Rail 2000

Rail 2000

Rail 2000 is a large-scale project of the Swiss Federal Railways established in 1987 to improve the quality of the Swiss rail network. It includes measures to accelerate a number of existing connections and the modernisation of rolling stock...

), the S3 service was extended from Dietikon through the Heitersberg Tunnel to Aarau

Aarau

with a new station at Mellingen

Mellingen

Mellingen is a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland. The town is located on the Reuss River.-History:...

. On 10 December 2006, S15

S15 (ZVV)

was opened between Rapperswil

Rapperswil

and Birmensdorf

Birmensdorf

Birmensdorf is a municipality in the district of Dietikon in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-Geography:Birmensdorf has an area of . Of this area, 41% is used for agricultural purposes, while 38.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 20.2% is settled and the remainder is non-productive...

following line improvements. It was extended from Birmensdorf to Affoltern am Albis

Affoltern am Albis

on 9 December 2007. South of Zurich sections of the Sihltalbahn were doubled. On the rural feeder lines around Winterthur

Winterthur

(S33

S33 (ZVV)

to Schaffhausen

Schaffhausen

Schaffhausen is a city in northern Switzerland and the capital of the canton of the same name; it has an estimated population of 34,587 ....

, S35 to Wil

Wil

Wil is the capital of the Wahlkreis of Wil in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Wil is the third largest city in the Canton of St. Gallen, after the city of St...

and S41

S41 (ZVV)

The S41 is a regional railway line of the Zürich S-Bahn on the ZVV . It connects the cantons of Zürich and Aargau, Switzerland with the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany.- Route :...

to Bülach

Bülach

Bülach is a municipality in Switzerland in the canton of Zurich, located in the district of the same name, and belongs to the Glatt Valley .-History:Bülach is first mentioned in 811 as Pulacha...

) services were increased to run every half hour. The S8

S8 (ZVV)

was extended from Winterthur to Weinfelden

Weinfelden

, providing with the existing S30 services two trains an hour on the line. In addition, the S16 was extended every hour to Schaffhausen, stopping after Winterthur only at Andelfingen

Andelfingen, Switzerland

Andelfingen is a municipality in the district of Andelfingen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Andelfingen is first mentioned in 1248 as Andelfingon. Until 1970, it was known as Grossandelfingen.-Geography:...

and Neuhausen am Rheinfall

Neuhausen am Rheinfall

. Moreover, on the line from Winterthur to Wil a new station opened at Winterthur Hegi

Hegi

Hegi is a quarter in the district 2 of Winterthur.It was formerly a part of Oberwinterthur municipality, which was incorporated into Winterthur in 1922....

Current and future works

Following a successful referendum a project is now under construction consisting of a second underground station under the Zurich station—also known as the Löwenstrasse station—and the Weinberg Tunnel to Oerlikon for the use of both long-distance and S-Bahn trains. The new works are planned to be completed between 2013 to 2015; breakthrough was achieved on the Weinberg tunnel in November 2010.

When it is completed a fourth stage of the expansion of the S-Bahn will be implemented:

Services on the south bank of Lake Zurich (from Pfäffikon (SZ)
Pfäffikon, Schwyz
Pfäffikon is the principal town of the Municipality of Freienbach in canton Schwyz in Switzerland. Together with Wollerau, Pfäffikon is considered the principal town of the borough Höfe and the center of the region of Ausserschwyz. The former farm town is known today as cultural, economic and...

and Thalwil
Thalwil
Thalwil is a municipality in the district of Horgen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. As of 2010 its population was of 17,189.-History:...

) to Oerlikon or the airport will no longer reverse in the Zurich main station but instead use the new Löwenstrasse station.
The line from Stadelhofen to Zurich main station (Museumstrasse station) and Oerlikon is now congested. The routes from the Limmat valley (Wettingen
Wettingen
Wettingen is a residential community in the district of Baden in the Swiss canton of Aargau. With a population about 20,000, Wettingen is the largest municipality in the canton.-Geography:...

, Killwangen
Killwangen
Killwangen is a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:The town was first known as Chullewangen as early as 1227. The name is alemannish in origin. For nearly 600 years, Killwangen was dependent on the monastery in nearby Wettingen. In 1798, Napoleon's...

-Spreitenbach
Spreitenbach
Spreitenbach is a municipality in the district of Baden in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland, located in the Limmat Valley .It lies southeast of the district center directly on the border with the canton of Zurich....

, Dietikon
Dietikon
Dietikon is the fifth biggest city of the canton of Zürich in Switzerland, after Zürich, Winterthur, Uster and Dübendorf. It is the capital of the same-named district of Dietikon and part of the Zürich metropolitan area.- Geography :...

) will use the Löwenstrasse station and continue to Oerlikon.
Between Stadelhofen and Winterthur services will operate every quarter of an hour.
Long-distance trains between west and east Switzerland (Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...

-Zurich-St. Gallen
St. Gallen
St. Gallen is the capital of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It evolved from the hermitage of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century. Today, it is a large urban agglomeration and represents the center of eastern Switzerland. The town mainly relies on the service sector for its economic...

) will operate through the Löwenstrasse station and the Weinberg Tunnel with reduced travel times of up to 30 minutes because they will avoid reversal and the new route will allow the introduction of new and faster double-decker trains.
The 4 platforms of Löwenstrasse station will increase the capacity of Zürich Hauptbahnhof by around 100 000 passengers. After opening of the new underground platforms 500 000 passengers are expected to pass through Zurich main Station daily.

Further improvements are envisaged, including two additional tracks at Oerlikon railway station, a passing loop in Pfäffikon and adjustments at various stations. Further improvements in the corridor between the airport and Winterthur are being developed as part of the second stage of Rail 2000

Rail 2000

for long-distance trains, which would require further adjustments for the S-Bahn.

External links

ZVV official website: Routes & zones

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