A recent report by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) has found that public transport in Switzerland is not as equal as you might expect. The latest data for 2022 shows that trains in French-speaking areas of the alpine nation are 50 percent more likely to be delayed than their counterparts east of the Röstigraben.
According to Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), reported in RTS, 9,6 percent of trains in Romandy are at least three minutes delayed. Compared to the national average (6,3 percent), services in French-speaking areas are around 50 percent more likely to be late.
The worst station in Switzerland for delays was found to be Gutenberg in Canton Bern, where 60 percent of services were delayed in 2022. This was followed by Gerra, Canton Ticino, with 54,9 percent and Corcelles, also in Canton Bern, where 38,1 percent of trains arrived at least 180 seconds late. The worst Swiss city for punctuality was Basel, with 15,1 percent of services from the main station delayed in 2022.
What's more, a spokesperson for SBB admitted that there isn’t much they can do to reduce delays. "The basic timetable [for Romandy] is around 20 years old, it dates from the rail project in 2000. Since then, increases in speed have accumulated and there are no longer enough time buffers for trains.. even rain and dead leaves can cause delays because trains accelerate and slow down more slowly," Frédéric Revaz told RTS.
While certain regions have fallen behind in terms of punctuality, the national picture is positive. SBB recorded delays of more than 180 seconds on 6,3 percent of services in 2022, a 2,9 percent drop compared to 2018.
The most punctual station in Switzerland was found to be Linthal Braunwaldbahn in Canton Glarus, where only 0,3 percent of services were delayed in 2022. Steinibach (Bern), Bern Felsenau, Bern Tiefenau and Unterzollikofen (Bern) came in joint second with 0,4 percent. The best of the cities for punctuality was Zug, with only 4,7 percent of services delayed in 2022.