To highlight the number of top museums in the city, Zurich has decided to give the number four tram route a million-franc makeover. The new “Museumslinie 4” project will direct locals and tourists to 20 different museums across the city, all on one route.
Currently, the number four tram route has 20 museums within easy reach of a stop, including the Landesmuseum, Museum für Gestaltung and the Gross- and Fraumünsters. Under the new scheme, tourists and locals will be guided to these landmarks with signs on the ground at tram stops, and colourful posters and information boxes on all trams.
In a statement, the council said that it wanted to make local museums more visible in order to boost tourism and hoped to build Zurich's reputation as a “museum city.” The pilot project will last for two years and will cost 1,27 million Swiss francs to implement.
This is not the first time Swiss public transport has been used to attract tourists to the city. Already, Museumslinie 21 runs on the last weekend of every month, using 19th-century trams to take tourists around the old and new towns of Zurich. Other special tram services include the "Gourmet Line" - a special old tram that offers wine tastings, apéro and fondue.
Along with the new museum line, the Zurich Museums Association, Zurich Tourism and other smaller museums are developing an interactive map based on the route of the tram. It is hoped that the makeover will direct visitors to museums that are often overlooked by tourists, such as the Finance Museum, Cabaret Voltaire and the Pavillion Le Corbusier.
The pilot project is expected to be reviewed by the city council in 2024. If it proves a success, authorities have hinted that more “themed tram lines” may be in the pipeline.