Swiss National Railway

The Swiss National Railway (SNB ) was from 1870 to 1880 railway company of Switzerland.

• 5.1 Current use

The project

The Winterthur Democrats to the mayor Johann Jakob Sulzer wanted to build a railway from Lake Constance to Lake Geneva, which should be the monopoly of the existing railway companies Northeastern Railway (NOB ), Swiss Central Railway ( SCB) and Chemins de fer de la Suisse Occidentale (SO) break. This railway companies were designated by the Democrats as because their capital mainly came from private individuals who invested about Italian and French banks, as well as through the establishment of the liberal Alfred Escher Schweizerische Kreditanstalt in the companies. In contrast, the Swiss national railway should be a , which should be financed by the public sector of developed cities and towns. Major contributions were made by Winterthur, Baden, Lenzburg and Zofingen, which thereby would be more independent of the economically powerful Zurich.

Well-known advocate of the National Railway were the following persons:

• Johann Jakob Sulzer, former Mayor of Winterthur
• Salomon Bleuler - host, editor of the newspaper The Landbote
• Gottlieb Ziegler, Government of the Canton of Zurich
• Theodor Ziegler, state clerk of Winterthur
• Friedrich Albert Lange, German Professor
• Frederick Joseph Bürli, Aargau National

Construction and opening

The Swiss National Railway was created in 1872 from the merger of the two companies Winterthur - singing - Kreuzlingen and Winterthur, Zofingen. It was divided into the following three sections:

• I. Section: Konstanz - Singen- Winterthur: 74 km ( estimate: CHF 11 million)
• II Section: Winterthur Baden- Zofingen: 85 km ( estimate: CHF 17 million)
• III. Section: Zofingen Langenthal - Herzogenbuchsee - Lyss: 62 km (not built )

Triggered by the founder noise economic crisis made ​​it difficult to raise the capital needed for construction. Already for the construction of the First Section, which was opened on 17 July 1875 had to be used for the Section II certain funds. The construction of Section II was only possible after financings, with Baden and Lenzburg in 1876 withdrew, which still meant more investment for Zofingen and Winterthur. The route Zofingen -. . Baden Upper Town opened finally on September 6, 1877 Due to the delayed construction of the bridge over the Limmat the continuation followed by Winterthur until October 15, 1877 Although between Winterthur and Effretikon already passed the double track of the Northeastern Railway, had for National railway specifically a third track to be built. The construction of the I. and II section at the end cost CHF 31 million, III. Section was never built.

Decline

The National Railway threw for various reasons from any profit. On the one hand created the existing railway companies Competing routes, on the other hand, the volume of traffic on the national railway was low. The route led through traffic weak area and operated out of Winterthur no major centers. In particular, Zurich was not connected to the rail network, because the track waved before the city in a narrow arc from Glattal directly into a Furttal. Because the route of many of the failure of the railway project was blamed, this arc is today still referred to as bankruptcy curve. Next, the transport quantities of the textile industry were generally decreased in Winterthur because of the noise caused by the founders economic crisis and did not let boost by dumping the freight charges by the National Railway itself.

Competing routes

During the construction of the national railway, the Nordostbahn brought freight traffic on the connection Baden - Winterthur back by introduced a shorter connection. The construction of the railway line Winterthur -Koblenz (opened 1876), the purchase of Bülach Rain Mountain Railway ( Opening: 1865 Sell: 1877) and the construction of the Bülach -Baden train ( opening: October 1, 1877) was only two weeks before the operation recording the National railway is 2 km shorter route Winterthur - Bülach - Low Straight - Otelfingen - Wettingen the Northeastern Railway.

Next, the Swiss Central Railway Solothurn Olten tapped her with the Gäubahn, so that the planned National Railway Zofingen - Solothurn would have had no chance of return.

Liquidation

After only four months of continuous operation between Constance and the railway had Zofingen on 18./20. February 1878 be compulsory liquidation due to financial problems. At the auction of 15 March 1880, the Swiss Northeastern Railway took over the bankrupt's estate for CHF 3.8 million, representing 12.4 % of its value. Villages and towns along the routes were in debt deep and often had to pay off the debt caused far by the Swiss National Railway in the 20th century. Particularly high debt had the cities of Winterthur, Baden, Lenzburg and Zofingen, but the Baden Stadtammann Armin Kellersberger could by negotiations to avert the bankruptcy of the latter three. Winterthur paid the last national railway debt until 1954.

After the acquisition of National rail routes through the Northeast rail track each one was canceled on the parallel routes again. The third track between Winterthur Effretikon and disappeared in 1880, which was built for the Bülach -Baden train second track between Otelfingen and Wettingen 1882.

Stretch

The new Mittellandtransversale lay outside the major economic centers in more sparsely populated areas. She started singing and Constance, where connection was to the Black Forest Baden train to Offenburg, as well as in Kreuzlingen with connection to the boat trip on Lake Constance. The to be built by the National railway line ran through Etzwilen - Winterthur - Effretikon - Kloten - Seebach - Wettingen - Baden - Lenzburg - Suhr to Zofingen, which was developed with a branch line from Suhr Aarau. In Zofingen originally Gäubahn should continue to Solothurn and Lyss. After the Gäubahn was built by Swiss Central Railway ( SCB), the National Railway projected itself a distance Zofingen - Langenthal - Herzogenbuchsee - Lyss. In Lyss was following the Broyetalbahn that leads from Lyss to Palézieux to Lausanne.

Initially Zurich should not be developed. So you wanted the one hand, the supremacy of Zurich against Winterthur break and on the other hand, to the opposite of the NOB 8 km shorter route to the lucrative freight Winterthur - take a swim. After also introduced on the initiative of the Democrats of the Railways Act of 1872 that is needed to be passed mandatory on the shortest connection of freight.

It was only in 1877 planned the National Railway Zurich also to open up, but at Baden and Zofingen fell on strong displeasure. The connection from Seebach to Oerlikon was built in 1909 by the SBB.

Other side branches were planned by Winterthur in Basel, through the Tösstal and Effretikon to Wetzikon. Besides the Tösstal train, which was built by the Democrats by a separate company, the Northeastern Railway built the planned branches in competition with the National Railway.

Current usage

• The railway line Etzwilen - constancy and the railway line Kreuzlingen Kreuzlingen Hafen serves mainly regional transport. It is used by trains S 3 St. Gallen Haggen - Schaffhausen and Kreuzlingen S 8 - Roman Horn - Rorschach S-Bahn St. Gallen traveled. On the section Etzwilen - Stein am Rhein runs the S29 Winterthur HB - Stein am Rhein, the S -Bahn Zurich. The section of Konstanz - Kreuzlingen is used by Thurbo regional trains and transit of freight trains from the south of Germany towards Austria.

• On the railway line Etzwilen singing the passenger has already been set in 1969. The line was never electrified, but used until 12 December 2004 of the trains rolling road that were covered with SBB Bm 6/6 diesel locomotives. In singing a short part of the line was dismantled to make way for a traffic roundabout. Since 1 August 2007, at the steam trains of the Railway Museum Stein am Rhein - Etzwilen - Hemishofen - Ramsen (VERY ) on the former national railway. The Rhine bridge at Hemishofen is classified as a monument of national importance.

• The railway line Winterthur - Etzwilen is from the S 29 Winterthur HB - Stein am Rhein navigate the S-Bahn Zurich.

• The section of Winterthur - Effretikon was dismantled after the takeover by the Nordostbahn 1880.

• The railway line Wettingen -Effretikon is traversed by trains of the Zurich S-Bahn. The S 6 (Baden AG - ) Otelfingen - Rain Village - Zurich HB - Uetikon uses the distance between Wettingen and Seebach, S 7 Winterthur HB - Kloten - Zurich HB - Miles - Rapperswil between Opfikon and Effretikon. The bankruptcy curve between Opfikon and Seebach was taken and dismantled at May 26, 1909 for failure to use out of operation. When the Second World War, the compound was hastily rebuilt and put into operation on 15 November 1939 so that the east-west traffic would be maintained at a possible destruction of the railway facilities in Zurich Oerlikon can be. Freight trains can drive around Zurich north with the railway line Wettingen -Effretikon. By connecting Würenlos - Kill cheek Spreitenbach the trains from eastern Switzerland directly in the yard Limmat. The section Seebach - Wettingen served from 1905 to 1909 Maschinenfabrik Oerlikon for the trial operation of the electrical Zugsförderung with single phase.

• The railway line Zofingen Wettingen must be divided into several sections: On the section Wettingen - Gruemet passenger on 12 December 2004 has been set. The track is still used by freight traffic on the operation of the tank farm Mellingen and sidings in Baden Upper Town.
• The section Gruemet - Lenzburg has been integrated into the busy double track Heitersberg line, which is part of the east-west main route of Switzerland.
• The section Lenzburg - Zofingen is traversed by the S 28 the S-Bahn Aargau and is derived in the vernacular of National Railway as " Nazeli " means

• Degradation of the railway line Aarau -Suhr, whose track is taken from the WSB. The railway line Aarau Suhr was decommissioned on 12 December 2004. The route is used by the meter gauge Wynental and Suhrentalbahn from the road to move to a natural route.