Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Zurich ranked second-best European railway station

zurich station
The only criterion on which Zurich lagged behind was the number of domestic destinations. Keystone / Alessandro Della Bella

Zurich’s central station was bested only by London St Pancras in the first European Railway Station Index. 

The rankings, carried out by the Consumer Choice CenterExternal link, assessed 50 of Europe’s largest railway stations for passenger experience. Criteria used include domestic and international connectivity, crowds, restaurant and shopping facilities, wheelchair access, as well as number of days workers went on strike.  

Zurich main station scored 111 points out of a maximum of 139 (St Pancras scored 116). The Swiss railway hub had the highest number of restaurants (62) and the second-highest number of shops (92) among the 50 stations assessed. The only criterion on which it lagged behind was the number of domestic destinations (29) compared with other leaders like St Pancras (43) or Leipzig Central Station (51).  

The railway station in Swiss capital Bern also did well to clinch 11th place with a score of 93. Both Zurich and Bern were leaders when it came to worker strikes (only one day each per year) compared with all six Paris stations assessed (118 strike days each). 

Half of the stations in the top ten are in Germany. Apart from Zurich and London St Pancras, the only non-German ones that made it to the top ten were Roma Termini, Milano Centrale and Moscow Kazansky. 

More
Train on scenic bridge in Alps

More

Swiss remain European champions of rail commuting

This content was published on The Swiss took the train on average 71 times last year, travelling 2,398 kilometres by rail, according to the latest figures from the European Statistical Office, Eurostat. Measured by distance travelled per capita, Switzerland is a European leader. The average train distance covered by train passengers in Switzerland last year far outstripped its nearest rivals.…

Read more: Swiss remain European champions of rail commuting
More
angry people on train

More

How to behave on a Swiss train

This content was published on Jump on, ride to your stop, hop off — without offending anybody. Sounds easy, but it’s not, warns a guru of Swiss transport etiquette.

Read more: How to behave on a Swiss train


Popular Stories

Most Discussed

News

Beer sales dampened by bad weather

More

Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather

This content was published on The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.

Read more: Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR