In the first half of 2025, 1.41 million people a day travelled on the trains of the SBB4.8% more than in the same period last year. This is an all-time record. Another reason for satisfaction: 94.5% of trains were on time. This represents an increase of 0.7 points compared with the same period in 2024. " I am also particularly pleased that punctuality in French-speaking Switzerland is now on a par with the national average. In fact, it has gained 1.7 points" explains Vincent Ducrot.
" This improvement is taking place at a time when our network is affected by major works, sometimes blocking an entire line. But contrary to what many predicted, our customers have adapted well to these constraints. Not least because we have been able to adjust our timetables to guarantee punctuality." he adds.
New rail hubs are thus gaining in importance. " For example, we are developing rail transfers at Renens near Lausanne and at Berne-Wankdorf. This will reduce congestion at major stations and offer passengers more connections and better mobility." explained the Managing Director.
One of SBB's current strategic strengths is international expansion.
What is your international strategy?
Vincent Ducrot - Our vocation is not to operate internationally on our own, but to do so in partnership with national rail companies such as the RENFEthe ÖBBthe DB, Trenitalia or the SNCF. Expansion will therefore be based on cooperation, not competition. But we are currently coming up against a lack of rolling stock because our partners have a limited rail fleet. Hence our idea of also ordering high-speed trains to guarantee this international operation. But let me stress again: we will not be operating these lines with our own staff. And we won't be doing the distribution. That's not our vocation at all.
Where do you stand on the purchase of new rolling stock?
Vincent Ducrot - We are currently consulting leasing consortia. The final decision, whether to buy or lease, will be taken next year. The major manufacturers remain Alstom, Hitachi and Siemens, which are capable of supplying multi-current trains adapted to international use.
There is a lot of talk about a high-speed line to London. Could you elaborate?
Vincent Ducrot - It's one of the major destinations from Switzerland. We need to be present where people travel, and London is a big draw. There's enough potential for a direct link Switzerland-London is profitable. We believe in it, and we wouldn't be so committed to this project if we weren't convinced. But let's be clear: it won't happen tomorrow. We first need to prepare the framework conditions, i.e. have the right rail terminals and obtain additional tracks in the Channel Tunnel. Getlink has announced its intention to increase the number of trains by 2030This will pave the way for new connections. It will also be necessary to settle the question of the Paris bypassWe're looking at the Disneyland Paris station or the Roissy-CDG station. We are looking at Disneyland Paris or Roissy-CDG station.
So the train would be direct, with no intermediate stops? Where would it depart from in Switzerland?
Vincent Ducrot - Yes, it would be a non-stop train. Unless we stop at a terminal offering the same control conditions, but the idea is to have a direct link. Ideally, we would start from both Geneva and Zurich/Basel. All three offer sufficient potential.
You also want to see an improvement in Lyon. What's at stake?
Vincent Ducrot - Today, between Geneva and Lyon, you have two major conurbations and, between them, only one TER that stops everywhere. That's not good enough. Our aim would be to introduce direct, regular and comfortable trains. Not necessarily very fast, because the infrastructure doesn't allow it, but at least reliable. The potential is enormous, but the line suffers from a weak power supply and limited capacity, which complicates matters.
What about the south of France?
Vincent Ducrot - A Geneva-Marseille exists in the summer, but not all year round. There is strong demand from Switzerland for flights to Avignon, Marseille and the Côte d'Azur, and today we are not meeting this demand sufficiently. Our medium-term objective is also to link Geneva to Barcelona via Montpellier. Here again, the current limitation remains the rolling stock, but the acquisition of high-speed trains should enable us to remedy this. These trains would also run faster where possible - mainly in France, Spain and Italy. This will also enable us to launch a line to Rome with optimum journey times.
Are you interested in night trains?
Vincent Ducrot - The night trains are not our priority, despite the hype they generate. A night train carries too few passengers to be profitable, especially given the cost of using an international train path. Nevertheless, next year we will be launching a link to Copenhagen/Malmö with ÖBB, the Austrian railways. Malmö is a hub for other destinations in Scandinavia, such as Gothenburg and Stockholm. But this remains a niche market, and support from the Swiss Confederation is imperative. Our strategy remains focused on day trains.
Would you consider a low-cost offer like Ouigo?
Vincent Ducrot - Frankly, we're not considering it. Once again, if you look at the situation in France, there is room on the lines to integrate Ouigo. And there are customers. In Switzerland, the situation is completely different. We no longer know how to move people around in the basic train system. Today, if you take Lausanne-Geneva or Berne-Zurich, there would be room to run trains every quarter of an hour and fill them. So we're not going to go low-cost again when we can't run enough trains. As for fares, we offer thousands of low-cost fares every day on our lines, thanks to artificial intelligence, which adjusts the offer according to demand.
A word about the Swiss fare system, which is often confusing for foreigners, where the half-fare is always presented before the full fare. Why is this?
Vincent Ducrot - In Switzerland, almost two-thirds of the population travel with a Half-Fare travelcard. That's why, by default, our systems display this reduced fare. For a foreigner, this may come as a surprise, but it's adapted to our market. We have, however, improved online sales by connecting to the inventories of our partners (Italy, Austria, Spain and France). This means that you can now access the full range of fares from our site, as well as more international destinations.
