Federal Council to invest CHF3.5 billion in regional transport

Ticket revenues only cover about half of the costs of regional railways, buses, boats, and cable cars. The rest is covered equally by the federal government and the cantons. Keystone / Jean-Christophe Bott

The federal government wants to support regional public transport with almost CHF3.5 billion ($2.79 billion) from 2026 to 2028. This is an average of 1.7% more per year than before. The additional money would go towards rolling stock and the further expansion of services.

The plans, which the Federal Council submitted for consultation procedure on Wednesday, are intended to expand existing service in canton Jura, as well as the new Hochrhein-Bodensee-Express, and the Oberalp Pass, Liestal-Basel, Lucerne-Engelberg, and Urseren-Surselva routes. Also the Regionalps rail network in Valais and several other regions would benefit from increased frequency of service.

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There would also be more boat connections between Lausanne and Thonon-les-Bains in France. The Federal Council also wants to use the money to promote energy transition projects such as electric vehicles and innovation.

The government has announced that it believes the proposed credit guarantee will cover the growing financial needs of regional public transport. At the same time, the government’s budget constraints will be taken into account.

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Transport companies may have hoped for more money. The Federal Council conceded that the companies would have to make efforts to improve efficiency to at least pre-crisis levels. They may also have to prioritise certain projects over others, the Federal Council wrote. The consultation procedure on the credit guarantee will last until October 18, 2024.

Compensation increased

The federal government has repeatedly increased its funding for regional transport in recent years. Between 2018 and 2028, government contributions for regional transport will increase by a total of 22.5% according to the authorities. This is significantly higher than increases in inflation rates.

Every day, regional public transport takes about 2.5 million people to work, to shops, or to leisure activities. Ticket and season ticket revenues only cover about half of the costs of regional railways, buses, boats, and cable cars. The rest is covered equally by the federal government and the cantons. Last year, the federal government paid CHF1.16 billion for a total of 1,587 lines which are operated by 111 transport companies.

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As an exception, the Federal Council is presenting the next credit guarantee for a period of three years instead of four. In doing so, it is synchronising its financing with the service agreements which it has with the infrastructure operators.

Adapted from German by DeepL/dkk/amva

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