If you commute or travel by train but need to drive to the station, chances are you can park for free or reserve a parking spot through the Park+Rail programme of Swiss rail company CFF. Check their website, in English, and enter your station to see what your options are. Unfortunately, not all stations are treated equally: some offer a few free spots (Mies for instance), others have spots for sale on a daily, monthly or yearly base (Nyon, Morges and Geneva, with waiting lists) or a parking lot run by a private company, with hourly rates (Geneva, Lausanne). Parking spaces also available for bicycles, indoor or outdoor.
If you live on the French side of the border and commute by bus or tram, call your local city hall, as each town has its own policy.
Track 1 in Geneva: station makeover will mean changes to train schedules 20-22 April
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The major overhaul of the Geneva train stations and its tracks, a three-year project, will have an impact on traffic this coming weekend, 20-22 April.
The CFF rail company’s list of changes, which go into effect Friday at 21:50:
ICN (intercity) trains cancelled between Geneva airport and Nyon: travelers should take the InterRegio train from the airport to Lucerne line, which will stop at Nyon (normally doesn’t) – the InterRegio trains leave the Cornavin station in the city centre four minutes earlier than the ICN trains;
some EuroCity and RegioExpress trains will be extended from Geneva to the airport, to ensure regular links;
The regional Coppet-Lancy-Pont Rouge trains will not operate between the Genève-Sécheron and Lancy-Pont-Rouge stops; buses will replace them between Genève-Sécheron and Cornavin, leaving Cornavin 10 minutes earlier to make sure travelers can make their train connections;
Anyone going to Lancy-Pont-Rouge should take the number 15 tram.
Service will return to normal with the first trains Monday morning 25 April.
Photo: ©2012 SBB/CFF Swiss rail
BERN, SWITZERLAND – The CFF is putting on 13 extra trains and adding cars to a number of trains between Thursday 5 April and Monday 9 April to handle the long Easter weekend traffic.
The additions will create some 30,000 extra seats, with the CFF noting that it wants to encourage travelers to avoid clogging roads, but that they should be able to travel seat, in comfort.
Most of the extra seats are on trains to and from Valais, Graubuenden and Ticino, the country’s biggest tourist regions.
CFF web pages with details on Easter traffic and extra trains
New Bombardier double-decker trains require larger shed
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – The first shovel of dirt was lifted 16 March for the new Herdern train storage shed in Zurich, a visible sign of how growing rail traffic is affecting Switzerland. The CFF rail company today carries 40 percent more passengers than in 2004 and one of the solutions to handle the continual growth in traffic was to order bigger trains in 2010.
The company ordered 59 new Bombardier double-decker trains, which cost CHF1.9 billion, that will begin linking French- and German-speaking Switzerland via main stations in 2014. The trains can carry 1,200 passengers each and they are 400 metres long each, necessitating the new shed, which will be the third longest building in Zurich.
The layout of the interior of the trains is currently under discussion following a decision last week by a high court to accept some of the complaints from two groups about handicapped persons’ access, notably concerning the level of the entrance to the trains and the restaurant accommodation.
The court ruled, however, that their demand for an elevator to the upstairs restaurant was a “disproportionate response” to the problem of inadequate access to good services.
Fire death, drunk driver victims, high speed chase part of busy weekend emergency services work
Strong winds coupled with frigid temperatures whipped up icy flames on the lake surface Monday morning
Lake Geneva views of opposite shorelines obliterated by heavy waves and two metre high tongues of icy mists Monday 6 February
GENEVA / LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – A new record low temperature for this winter was set in canton Graubuenden’s Engadine region, in Samedan this weekend: -35.1C.
The death toll from the cold in Europe, now estimated to be over 300 people, continues to rise.
In Switzerland, the icy weekend kept police and firefighters busy, and Touring Club Suisse (TCS), the automobile club, had a record 23,000 calls to help motorists.
Trains are running slow in several areas as the CFF rail company deals with icy lines and other cold-related problems.
Burst pipes caused flooding Saturday and Sunday, notably in Geneva and Lausanne, reports TSR. The head of Swissgrid, which manages the Swiss electricity supply, told NZZ in Zurich this weekend that the country risks blackouts in coming days because the system is pushed to its limits.
A main SSR (public broadcasting) emitter on top of Säntis mountain gave way under pressure from heavy snow, according to 24 Heures, and is using emergency power.
Vernier drunk driver crashes into trio
Police in Geneva were called to Vernier Saturday night where a 25-year-old man with a two-week old grudge against a nightclub worker left the establishment on Chemin des Batailles and got into his parked car, then drove into three young customers of the club, narrowly missing the club employee.
He had been drinking in several night spots and his alcohol level was measured at 1.69 after the accident, according to Geneva police. His victims were a 20-year-old Geneva man who lives in Vernier who was treated at the nearby Hopital de la Tour and two women who were taken to the cantonal hospital. The 19-year-old woman, who is Bolivian and lives in Rolle, is being treated for several facial injuries and the 18-year-old for a broken leg.
The driver continued and crashed into a number of rental cars parked nearby. He is under arrest for attempting to cause severe bodily harm and on other charges, and his license has been lifted.
Lausanne police chase ends in three captured
A car in Lutry with four people suddenly took off Friday when police stopped it and led area police on a high-speed chase as far as Chemin Campagne Pierraz-Portay in Pully, where the passengers took off on foot. Two were caught and arrested, along with the driver, when police discovered a quantity of goods stolens from homes in the Lausanne region. The car had Belgian plates and the two Algerians and one Iraqi were from Belgium, ages 32-35. Police are looking for their partner.
One dead in Martigny fire
One person died and another was saved by firefighters from a second floor balcony of an apartment building early Saturday 4 February when a fire broke out.
The identity of the victim is being established, say canton Valais police.
The first floor apartment was unoccupied. The cause of the fire, at 01:15, is being investigated.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Trains in both directions between Martigny and Sion will not be running again until Friday morning says the CFF rail company, after a heavy load fell from a bridge near Riddes, damaging contacts on the lines.
A bus service will replace local traffic but travellers between Geneva or Lausanne and Brig, including anyone going to resorts in the area, will have to travel via Bern.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – CFF train service between Lancy-Pont-Rouge and Geneva will stop from 09:00 Saturday until the end of service Sunday, 4 and 5 February.
The interruption is due to construction work on the line, part of the new Ceva regional rail project, and the CFF cautions that this is the first of what may be several such service cuts to allow work to move ahead.
Geneva transport services should be used instead of the train, the CFF says.
Regional trains, especially in border areas, suffered losses as tourism dropped when the franc climbed
BERN, SWITZERLAND – Four rail groups are receiving CHF21 million in aid from the Swiss government to offset some of the losses they suffered in 2011 due to the rapid increase in the value of the Swiss franc during the year.
All four provide transalpine shipping and use combined or piggyback cargo transport, carrying trucks to reduce the environmental impact on the Alps.
The government in 2011 set aside more than CHF28m in credit for which companies could apply, showing the losses directly linked to the currency’s sudden rise. Four presented their figures at the start of 2012 and will be helped out of the funds set aside: BLS Cargo, CFF Cargo International, Crossrail and TX Logistik.
Another CHF11.2m was distributed in December 2011 to a number of transport companies, mainly regional, which lost money because of a sharp fall in tourism due to the high franc.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Flights in and out of Brussels are being disrupted Monday by a 24-hour strike by Belgium’s three main unions. The 30 January labour action comes at the same time as the Eurozone leaders’ summit to discuss the sovereign debt crisis. The unions’ protest against higher taxes and an austerity programme is causing havoc with air, rail and road traffic.
Geneva flights are so far operating mostly on schedule, but check your airline to confirm, the two airports caution.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – A number of Swiss trains, including Intercity trains between Zurich and Basel and Zurich and Bern, have been running late for most of the day due to a break in the line at Deitikon, in canton Zurich. Trains have had to alternate on the same line in some areas, causing delays of up to 30 minutes. The main Geneva-St Gallen trains have been affected.
CFF rail company authorities say cold may be the culprit, affecting some electric lines. Monday night was Switzerland’s coldest night to date this winter.
Lausanne-Geneva train traffic to grow 35% in next three years
View from the rails, Lausanne, 20 December 2011
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The additional CHF90 fine that went into effect 11 December for CFF rail travelers taking the train without a ticket has resulted in half a million francs in additional revenue in 10 days, according to Zurich’s NZZ newspaper 21 December. The CFF’s spokesperson Lea Meyer told NZZ that most passengers are nevertheless traveling with tickets: on average one person is fined for every two trains, some 800 fines a day.
The company said when it announced the sharp increase in fines (in addition to the price of the ticket passengers must pay) that the goal was not to bring in income so much as to reduce the inefficiency and high cost of ticket-takers issuing tickets.
Major extensions to Lausanne station moving ahead
In other Swiss rail news, the CFF in the past week acquired three buildings next to the station in Lausanne, as planned, that will the station to add new lines and double the rail capacity between Geneva and Lausanne by 2025.
The CFF told GenevaLunch this week that traffic on the line is expected to see a 35 percent increase by 2015, in just three years, due to the population growth in the region.
The company had 25,000 travelers a day on the line in 2000 and it has already doubled to 50,000 daily this year. By 2025 it will reach 100,000 a day.
From submarine cable laying to the satellite weather instruments, ABB expands R&D
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Swiss power and automation firm ABB announced two new ventures this week. The first is a $5.5 million deal awarded by the Canadian Space Agency for key applications for an instrument designed for meteorological observations on Polar Communications and Weather (PCW) mission satellites.
The R&D contract is for an imaging spectroradiometer, a device designed to measure the wavelengths of individual colors of light. “Currently there are limitations to the short-term weather forecasts, long-term climatological predictions, and other services offered in the high Arctic by existing satellites, particularly with respect to mobile communications for ships, planes and unmanned aerial vehicles,” ABB says in a statement.
“To help improve these services the PCW mission aims to place two satellites into a highly elliptical orbit approximately 39,900 km above the North Pole to provide reliable and continuous communication services and to monitor weather and climate changes throughout the Arctic region.”
The company also announced 23 November an agreement to buy Canadian transport company Envitech Energy “to expand its technology offering in the electrical equipment and solutions sector for rail infrastructure.” The Quebec firm, with 36 employees, is active mainly in urban public transport.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – California’s efforts to extend its planned high-speed rail line from San Francisco to Anaheim won’t have funding from the federal government in 2013, but the High Speed Rail Authority in the state says this won’t have an immediate impact, since the programme assumes no federal funding in 2012. The $8 billion cut from the 2012 federal budget 18 November by a congressional committee is just the first slice of a $61 billion package for California that is part of President Obama’s plans for a national bullet train line, reports KQED in California.
Swiss soldiers travel on Swiss trains for free when on duty (photo: Morges station, November 2011)
BERN, SWITZERLAND – The 2012 train schedule that goes into effect 11 December will offer travellers better connections for trips abroad. Some parts of the Lake Geneva region will also see improvements. But the best news for many working travellers is that mobile connections are being improved, as is the online sales service.
The CFF rail company presented highlights of the new schedule to the press Thursday 17 November.
You’ll be able to plug in and connect better in 2012
All the new trains will have electric plugs and existing intercity trains will also get them. “All the new Duplex trains on the intercity trains will be equipped with WLAN,” says Jeannine Pilloud.
A major improvement could be the installation of equipment that amplifies signals received inside and outside the train cars, giving better access to the cell phone and Internet network.
1.8 million cell phone tickets ordered and number growing
The CFF app for ordering online tickets via cell phone is proving popular, with 1.8 million users since it was introduced in 2010, and the number is growing steadily, says the rail company.
Users of the small pocket timetables will find that some of the international ones are disappearing, in favour of online information, and that smaller stations’ stops are no longer listed, but are incorporated into regional listings. All details will be available online, however.
French-speaking Switzerland, especially commuters, to see significant improvements
A host of changes for trains in the Lake Geneva region will have a significant impact:
More double-decker trains will be used on the Geneva airport/Lucerne line, offering more seats
An additional InterRegio train will run between Neuchatel and Lausanne at 07:53 and the Neuchatel/La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle line will have additional service during rush hour and a pair of trains is being added to the Neuchatel to Bienne line
Canton Vaud: the S4 line is being extended from Morges to Allaman, stopping in Saint Prex and Etoy, which will now have trains every 30 minutes instead of once an hour, Monday to Friday.
Geneva: La Plaine/Geneva, more trains will run during rush hour. Coppet–Geneva–Lancy-Pont-Rouge trains, the 30-minute schedule is being extended for weekend night and trains will run every half hour on Fridays and Saturdays until the end of the day.
New international connections, travel time cut on major links
Some serviced is back, but expect delays, disruptions for the morning
Lausanne-Geneva trains, including Brig-Geneva airport line, not running Tuesday morning
Update 09:15 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Trains are back on the track and running btween Lausanne and Geneva, after a 70-minute stop during rush hour on one of Switzerland’s most heavily travelled routes, says the CFF rail company. A signal box breakdown in Coppet was responsible for stopping the trains from 07:30 to 08:40. Repair work will continue until noon, but travellers should expect disruptions and delays for the morning, says the CFF.
Regional and RER trains were not affected, between Geneva and Coppet, and between Lausanne and Allaman, but the breakdown left the Intercity trains unable to make the Lausanne-Geneva connection.
The CFF announced the problem via loudspeakers on the quais and put a team of helpers out to guide people.
Updates in English from the CFF.
Here are details from the CFF, provided at 08:21:
Between Coppet and Gland on the Genève-Aéroport – Lausanne line, no train services are operating.
The Lancy-Pont-Rouge – Genève – Coppet S-Bahn trains are running on schedule.
Trains RE Genève – Lasanne are cancelled between Coppet and Gland.
Trains IR Genève-Aéroport – Lausanne – Brig are cancelled between Genève-Aéroport and Lausanne.
Trains IR Genève-Aéroport – Lausanne – Bern – Luzern are cancelled between Genève-Aéroport and Lausanne.
Trains ICN Genève-Aéroport – Morges – Biel/Bienne – Basel SBB / Zürich HB – St. Gallen are cancelled between Genève-Aéroport and Morges.
Intercity trains Genève-Aéroport – Lausanne – Bern – Zürich HB – St. Gallen are cancelled between Genève-Aéroport and Lausanne.
Passengers travelling from Coppet to Nyon or vice versa travel via BUS TPN11.
Reason: Signal box malfunction
Duration of disruption indefinite.
Roger Federer and the Swiss passenger train locomotive named after him (photo, ©2011 Nationale Suisse, may not be reproduced without permission)
BASEL, SWITZERLAND – Roger Federer and other tennis champs might be in training in Basel for the upcoming tournament there, but the Swiss star took time out Friday afternoon 28 October to train in a different way: he baptized a Swiss locomotive.
“I have never named a locomotive before, let alone one bearing my own name,” he said at the ceremony.
The train engine has been carrying passengers on Swiss trains since the start of September. It was named after the tennis star, with whom the company has had a sponsorship agreement for several years.
Federer says he is particularly pleased that, for every kilometre travelled by the locomotive, Nationale Suisse will make a contribution to the Roger Federer Foundation in Africa.
Nationale Suisse, an insurance company heavily involved in the new Gotthard rail tunnel project, and the CFF rail company say the train is expected to stay in service for a number of years.
The Swiss Indoors Basel ATP tennis tournament kicks off Monday 31 October in the western Swiss city which is also Federer’s home town.
Switzerland's new hybrid cargo and train maneuvering locomotives: cheaper to maintain, more energy-efficient
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – A 4,000 ton annual reduction in CO2 and a significant improvement in maintenance costs: Swiss cargo trains will have 30 hybrid locomotives starting in 2013, the CFF rail company has announced.
The new engines are made by Stadler Winterthur, whose director, Hartmut Dietrich, calls them “the most modern and most innovative on the market”.
The locomotives were presented by the two companies 14 October in Winterthur.
The CFF’s traction energy consumption has remained relatively stable for the past four years, between 1,827 and 1,879 GWh.
The new engines are based on an existing model, entirely electric, used by the CFF for maneuvers with passenger trains, the Ee 922.
The new model’s (E 923) electric traction power is twice as great, but it also has a diesel motor for rail lines that have no electric contact points, which gives it far greater flexibility.
The new locomotives have a higher speed, up to 120kph, which will allow them to free the rail lines more quickly for other trains, resulting in sharply lower operating costs, says the CFF.
CFF is paying CHF88 million for the E 923 engines, some of which will be delivered in 2012, but it notes that it will lose the high maintenance cost of older locomotives, such as the Bm 4/4s, which are being retired.
Snow, mud and rainstorms have disrupted traffic, notably around Frutigen and Kandersteg (photo, winter 2010, BLS rail near Kandersteg)
BERN, SWITZERLAND – A number of small train lines, mainly in central Switzerland, continue to have disrupted service after Monday’s storms and mud slides, and some will remain closed until 12 October.
The CFF provides a list and a map of areas where service is interrupted.
BERN, SWITZERLAND – A number of Swiss trains are delayed, cancelled or taking different routes Friday after a Thursday evening sideswipe crash between two trains left one conductor in critical condition. The cause of the crash in Olten, a major centre for Swiss trains, with several intersecting rail lines, is not yet known.
One of the trains had left Sissach and the other Basel. Twenty people were aboard the two trains, but there were no other serious injuries. The engine was badly damaged and two cars derailed in the accident.
The Olten-Basel line is closed until at least 15:00 Friday, with the CFF announcing the following changes (updates, CFF):
Derailment: Tecknau – Olten (SBB CFF FFS)
Derailment: Between Tecknau and Olten on the Basel SBB – Olten line, no train services are operating.
The Basel SBB – Chur / Zürich HB Intercity trains are being rerouted.
Long-distance trains IR Basel SBB – Luzern are cancelled between Gelterkinden and Olten.
Long-distance trains Basel SBB – Lugano / Locarno are cancelled between Basel SBB and Olten.
The IC Zürich HB – Bern trains make an unscheduled stop in Olten.
The Basel SBB – Bern – Interlaken Ost / Brig Intercity trains are being rerouted. The trains make an unscheduled stop in Gelterkinden. Please allow for approx. 30 minutes more travel time.
S-Bahn trains S3 are cancelled between Tecknau and Olten.
S-Bahn trains S9 are cancelled between Sissach and Olten.
Replacement buses operating Olten (xx:15 / xx:30 / xx:50) – Läufelfingen – Sissach.
Replacement buses operating Sissach (xx:10 / xx:35 / xx: 55) – Läufelfingen – Olten.
Passengers travelling from Basel SBB
- to Lugano – Chiasso / Locarno or vice versa travel via Zürich HB.
- to Luzern or vice versa travel via Zürich HB.
Passengers travelling from Liestal
- to Bern should take the S-Bahn S 3 to Gelterkinden and change in Gelterkinden onto the InterCity (IC) to Brig / Interlaken Ost.
- to Olten or vice versa travel via Aarau.
Passengers travelling from Gelterkinden to Olten should take the InterCity (IC) to Brig / Interlaken Ost.
Passengers travelling from Tecknau to Olten or vice versa travel via Sissach.
Please allow for a longer travelling time.
The connections are not guaranteed.
Duration of disruption expected until 07.10.2011 15:00.
For further information, please call free SBB hotline at 0800 99 66 33.
PARIS, FRANCE – The new Dijon-Mulhouse TGV train line in France was inaugurated Thursday 8 September by French President Nicolas Sarkozy. The line, which will open to travelers in December 2011, will cut nearly 1.5 hours from the route, which will take just two hours instead of 3.5.
Noise reduction panels to the west of the Lausanne train station will have to wait
LAUSANNE, SWITZERLAND – Panels to reduce noise from trains on the east side of Lausanne, in the direction of canton Valais, were approved in June 2011 after a five-year review, but new panels to the west of the station will have to wait, the Federal Transport Office said Thursday 4 August.
The delay is due to the new Lausanne-Renens fourth rail line, approved in December 2010. Noise panels and noise reduction windows for the area should be reviewed as part of the larger fourth rail project, the Bern office says. A revised project will be presented to the public at the end of the summer.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The schedule and prices for trains during the Paleo Festival in Nyon are now out.
The CFF rail company’s RailAway plan offers 20 percent off on travel, to help reduce road bottlenecks and pollution created by the 230,000 music fans who descend on Nyon 19-24 July.
Sample prices: second class with a half-fare card, from Geneva CHF6.80, from Lausanne CHF13, from Fribourg CHF26.40.
The shuttle bus between the station and the festival grounds is free of charge.
Special night trains, one an hour in each direction, will run starting at 01:30, to Geneva and to Lausanne-Montreux.
Buses serving the region will be waiting for the trains. A special train to Fribourg is being added that leaves at 02:30, arriving shortly before 04:00.
Train tickets are available at CFF rail stations (windows and machines),via internet on the CFF Ticketshop and by phone, at Rail Service: 0900 300 300 (CHF 1.19/min from fixed line phones).
EuroCity in Ticino (©2011 CFF)
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – EuroCity trains between Geneva and Milan will take a few minutes longer during the coming week, the CFF rail company warns, and passengers will have to change at Domodossola, effective today, Wednesday 13 July.
Regular maintenance work showed up repairs that are needed to the inclined trains axles on some of the EuroCity trains and the work is expected to last until at least the start of next week.
The slightly damaged axles are not a security risk, the CFF says, but if left alone more costly repairs will be needed in the future. The cause of the damage has not yet been determined.
EuroCity direct trains between Geneva and Venice are not affected and will continue to use the ETR610 inclined rails.
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – It will cost you only about CHF100 to go 300kph in China, on the Beijing-Shanghai route, but you won’t be behind the wheel, you’ll be in a passenger seat on the new high-speed train. The Chinese government 14 June unveiled the price schedule for the trains, which go into operation at the end of June, cutting travel time from the current high-speed train trip of 10 hours to under 5 hours.
China’s railway company will run 126 trains at 300kph every day and 54 trains at 250kph, as well as continuing to run 136 “normal” trains for the 1,318km journey. The fastest trains were originally scheduled to run at 350kph but the government decided to reduce the speed for cost and safety reasons.
Ticket prices in yuan will be RMB555 for second-class seats and RMB1,750 for first-class, for the 4-hour 48-minute journey. By comparison, a regular full-fare airplane ticket costs nearly RMB1,400 and the flight takes one hour, 40 minutes flying time.
Xinhua, the official news agency, issued a puzzling statement based on remarks by Vice Minister of Railways Hu Yadong at a press conference, that “Prices will float according to the market and for the good of passengers.”
China will continue to run 250kph trains, with tickets costing RMB410 to 650 for second and first class, respectively.
The new high-speed lines will also make it possible to “increase cargo transportation capacity by 140,000 tons per day and 50 million tons per year, according to Xinhua.
Italian side of the Simplon pass, March 2011
Updae 19:00 GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Police in canton Valais re-opened the Simplon road pass between Italy and Switzerland Friday morning after closing it for more than 24 hours following a fire in the Simplon rail tunnel. The fire broke out in a freight train early Thursday shortly after the train left Iselle, in Italy, heading for Switzerland. There were no injuries, but as of Friday afternoon smoke was still a problem in the tunnel and trains are being rerouted until at least Saturday noon.
The CFF rail companies has announced the following changes, until further notice:
Passengers from Basel, Geneva and Lausanne heading for Milan: take another route
Passengers travelling from Geneva / Lausanne to Milan’s Central station should take the EuroCity trains (EC) Genève – Lausanne – Milano Centrale and change in Brig + Domodossola. The CFF asks passengers to allow for a longer travelling time.
Passengers travelling from Basel SBB / Olten / Bern to Milano Centrale or vice versa should travel via Luzern / Zürich HB – Chiasso and allow for a longer travelling time.
Hotline
The CFF rail company hotline for updates, from inside Switzerland: 0800 99 66 33.
SION, SWITZERLAND – Sion fans were celebrating Sunday night after their team defeated Neuchatel Xamax 2-0 in a one-sided match, with Neuchatel never rising to the occasion.
It was Sion’s 12th Swiss Cup victory in 12 finals.
The train trip to Basel, site of the final, left a less positive trail, with one person injured by the crowd as it passed through Lausanne, according to ATS news agency. The train cars were heavily damaged, with two fires set in one train and windows broken. A dozen people were reportedly arrested, mainly for having fireworks.
Reduced local trains during repairs, Geneva-Versoix
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Major maintenance works on the railroad lines will result in regional trains between Geneva and Versoix being stopped after 21:00, starting 11 May, until 6 June, Monday/Tuesday nights to Friday/Saturday nights.
InterRegio, Intercity and RegioExpress trains will run on their normal schedules.
The nights of 1/2, 2/3 and 3/4 June, trains will run on their normal schedule, says the CFF rail company.
Buses will replace the trains. The Geneva Cornavin station bus stop will be at Place Montbrillant behind the station.
Easter weekend: sunshine, warm temperatures iln most of Switzerland
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The weather forecast for Switzerland is for sunshine and more of it, with a few drops of rain in northeastern Switzerland on Sunday 24 April. Lows of 6-7C and highs of 23 in Geneva to 26 in most other areas. The southeast corner of the country, around Samedan, is the one chilly patch, with temperatures of -2 to 14C.
Easter Friday and Monday traffic on roads: expect delays, look for alternative routes
School holidays began in a dozen cantons Thursday afternoon, and traffic began to build up quickly on roads heading south. By Friday morning at 08:00 the logjam on the north side of the St Gotthard tunnel was already 4 km long, with a one-hour wait. Friday is expected to be a heavy travel day on all main roads in Switzerland, so expect slowdowns.
Road forecasts are available in French from TCS (Touring Club Suisse), which suggests that drivers heading south from French-speaking areas use alternatives to the St Gotthard, which is a main European north-south road, taking for example the Grand St Bernard route. The Swiss Highway Office’s web site for trucks is updated every minute or so, giving real-time information on traffic situations, one of the best sites for this. TSR, Swiss public television, also has good traffic situation maps.
Schools that have been on spring break for the past two weeks, including many in Geneva and Vaud, return Tuesday, and Monday is forecast to be a very heavy traffic day on roads.
Airports and roads to them are also expected to be busier than usual, so build in extra travel time.
The CFF rail company recommends reserving ahead for international trains.
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Italy has reacted angrily after France stopped trains at the Ventimiglia-Menton border for several hours Sunday 17 April, to prevent North Africans entering the France. Italy has given temporary visas to thousands of Tunisians, according to the BBC, in the wake of the overthrow of Tunisia’s government, despite both Italy and France stepping up measures to stem the flow of immigrants from North Africa. The visas issued by Italy allow them to travel throughout the Schengen area, Italy says, under European Union rules, but France argues that they must show they can support themselves.
The Italian ambassador in Paris was instructed by his foreign minister to tell the French government of the “strong” protest by Italy to the halt, undertaken by the prefecture in France’s Alpes-Maritimes region. Italy insists the temporary visas are in line with EU regulations.
Italy has been negotiating with Tunisia over terms for repatriating illegal immigrants, including how to keep the returns low key to avoid too much publicity.
16 refugees drowned, 5 went missing just 2km from Yemen’s shores
The UNHCR (UN High Commissioner for Refugees) in Geneva last Friday issued sharp words to ships at sea who ignore troubled refugee boats, after the latest incident in which 16 people drowned and five went missing after an overcrowded boat from Somalia sank off the coast of Yemen. The survivors say they appealed to a passing cargo ship that ignored them. The UNHCR has previously said the number of such incidents, in the Gulf of Aden but also in the Mediterranean, may be increasing and Friday it appealed to shipmasters “to uphold the longstanding tradition of rescue at sea and helping vessels in distress.”
Links to other sites: BBC, Le Monde, Courriere della sera (Eng) and Courrierre front page (Ita)
Update, 06:50: questionnaires are being handed out this morning, Thursday, on the A1, the lake road, in trains
Expect delays for the regional travel survey, but take time to contribute
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Commuters and other travellers beware: build in extra time if you are travelling into Geneva, no matter how you are getting there, because of the major regional traffic survey getting underway early Thursday morning 24 March, the group responsible for the survey has told GenevaLunch.
DON’T try to avoid the surveys, authorities beg: this is your opportunity to influence regional travel solutions.
Drivers in particular should expect slowdowns from 06:30-20:00 on the days the survey moves to highways and roads into Geneva, from now until mid-April.
Motorcycles, bicycles, pedestrians will also be stopped.
Each road will be surveyed just one day.
The survey is being carried out jointly by French, Geneva and Vaud authorities to obtain a clearer picture of transport needs today and in the future, in order to accurately plan a regional transport programme. They are asking travellers to allow time to help with the survey in order to get a cross-section of the population that is as broad as possible with answers that provide a wealth of information.
Motorists taking the A1 autoroute into Geneva will be pulled over shortly before Founex and drivers on the lake road can also expect to be stopped, but the exact area has not been announced. People taking trains and buses into the city will also be handed surveys.
Police warn that pulling drivers over for the survey will cause traffic delays on roads. These will not be as bad as in 2005 and 2002 when similar surveys were done, police note, with more reinforcements this time to get traffic moving again quickly.
Earlier, detailed announcement, GenevaLunch
