Basel to get a trinational S-Bahn

The cantons of Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft, SBB, Deutsche Bahn (DB) and the Federal Office of Transport (BAV) presented the results of their planning on April 26. According to the results, a tunnel connection between Basel SBB station and Badischer Bahnhof station is the prerequisite for denser intervals, fewer transfers, shorter travel times and a reduction in the load on the streetcar lines that run through Basel's city center.

The tunnel route is to be connected above ground to the SBB station, the Badischer Bahnhof station and the St. Johann station. The line runs from the SBB station first via the Elsässerbahn, dips west of the zoo and reaches a new underground station in an arc via Schützenmatte, which is to be called "Basel Mitte". The line then crosses under the Rhine, accesses the Klybeck area with another new stop and reaches Badischer Bahnhof from the north. From the Mitte stop, a branch will be set up to connect St. Johann station and from there EuroAirport to the S-Bahn network.

From the point of view of those involved in the project, this variant is particularly attractive from an urban planning point of view because, in addition to the city center, it also provides access to the major development focus of Basel North. At the SBB station, there is an opportunity to create a second platform access by replacing the Margarethen Bridge with a new Margarethenplatz and connecting it directly to the platforms. This would create an attractive interchange between streetcars, buses and trains, a more direct access to the city center and a new station portal, the project managers said in a media release.

The total cost of the project will be around CHF 2.8 billion. In addition, there are planned investments on the feeder lines in Switzerland, Germany and in the direction of the EuroAirport. The total investment costs for all measures in favor of the trinational S-Bahn amount to CHF 4.25 billion according to current estimates.