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Basel - Blog Posts
The tri-national S-Bahn of Basel
Due to its location, Basel attracts people from three countries, and the rail network reflects that. On top of lines within Switzerland, one line arrives from France at Basel Central station, and several arrive from Germany at the Badischer Bahnhof on the North side of the Rhine. My trip to Augst via Basel and Wyhlen was a chance to ride on this suburban network of three companies in three countries.
Starting after lunch with the Hochrheinbahn which runs from Basel Bad., along the Northern side of the Rhine in Germany. This is the only line out of Basel that isn't electrified, so Baureihe 641 Diesel railcars run the route. We have this type of railcar in France too, it was designed as a response to a joint French-German tender for regional trains. Designed by De Dietrich and Linke-Hofmann-Busch, which were both bought by Alstom shortly after, it is the first example of what would become the Coradia platform.
On the Swiss side, the S-Bahn sees RABe 521 commuter trains run between Basel Central and Frick. This type of train is made by the Swiss company Stadler and is marketed as... the FLIRT. Stadler does this a lot, they also have the KISS and SMILE platforms, and each is the result of a convoluted acronym in German, though this one translated very nicely into English: Fast Light Intercity and Regional Train.
Finally, the French line of the S-Bahn goes out as far as Mulhouse, and is currently operated by electric AGC (Automotrice Grande Capacité - high-capacity unit) regional trains built by Bombardier (also since bought out by Alstom). 200 km/h express trains from Strasbourg also reach Basel Central, with the push-pull sets we already presented. The line from Mulhouse to Basel Central is electrified with French voltage (25 kV 50 Hz AC), which is different to the rest of the Swiss network (15 kV 16.7 Hz AC), hence the SNCF can run their trains into Basel with few adaptations (mainly comms).
And that's it for my tri-national tri-trip over the April-May break! Back to some older material next, it's time to look at Japan again.
Two crossings of the Rhine
The Swiss city of Basel lies on the border with France and Germany, and, as it's Switzerland, it hasn't changed hands or been attacked much (though the French did use Basel as target practice for a new cannon from their fort at Huningue once). It has a well-preserved historic centre, and, with the Rhine's current being consistently strong, it has a rare form of transportation.
This little ferry has no motor. It is tethered to a wire that crosses the river, and a lever at one end of the tether on the boat is all that's needed to turn the boat into the current which does the rest.
It's incredibly simple and easy! For a more engaging version of the story, here's a video by The Tim Traveller.
While I rode the boat with my sister, I continued upstream alone to another crossing, a bridge which doubles up as a dam for hydro-electric power stations on either side - or Kraftwerk as it's known in German.
Unlike in Basel, the Rhine at this point is an international border: Germany on the right-hand side, and Switzerland on the left-hand side. But with Germany and Switzerland being signatories of the Schengen agreement, this is what the border looks like:
The Rhine sees some impressive barges navigate roughly between Schaffhausen and Rotterdam, so there is a rather impressive lock next to this dam and the Kraftwerken. This is the view downstream from the top of the lock, with what I suspect was a border post on the right? I don't know, but I seem to remember that black and white stripes had some significance.
