Swiss passenger rail traffic hits record high; AI not recommended in the mountains; Zurich Hauptbahnhof wins another award

News for 22 September 2026

Rail demand rose by 3% compared to 2024, which is part of an ongoing trend. Over a ten-year period, rail passenger numbers have grown steadily. Between 2015 and 2025, rail transport volume rose by 16.3%, after plummeting in 2020 at the height of health restrictions, rail travel recovered.

Compared with other modes of transport, the rail network remains second, behind road transport. According to 2024 data, passenger cars accounted for 70% of the overall transport market, with 94.6 billion passenger-kilometres. Railways account for 17% of the total volume of travel, ahead of non-motorised transport, and buses and trams. In total, public transport accounts for 21% of passenger travel in the country.

Conventional rail accounts for more than 81% of passenger-kilometres travelled, confirming its position as the backbone of public transport in Switzerland.

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Swiss mountain guides are sounding the alarm over hikers using ChatGPT to plan trips into the Alps. Two women got lost in the Pyrenees this summer after following an AI-generated route, and other walkers had to be rescued in the middle of the night.

Guides say the tools give generic answers that ignore weather, season and glacier conditions. For example, a winter Chamonix-to-Zermatt route is very different from a summer version, with walkers using different passes and different refuges. Pierre Mathey of the Swiss Mountain Guides Association warns that online everything looks easy, but nature is another matter — he urges walkers to consult qualified local guides before setting out.

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Zurich has topped Europe’s biggest station ranking for the fifth year in a row. The Consumer Choice Center’s European Railway Station Index scores the continent’s 60 largest stations on delays, waiting times, connections, accessibility and services.

Switzerland’s three biggest stations run at 94% punctuality between them, and Lucerne posted the lowest average delay rate of all 60 stations. Bern came fifth and Lucerne 14th, while Paris Gare du Nord surged to second after slashing its delay rate from 20% to 5%. The bottom of the table is dominated by German stations, with Bremen last and Dortmund posting a delay rate of 73%.