Virtual Railfan Tour of Switzerland - Friday - Train Watching at Liestal

Liestal is a little way southeast of Basel and the Muttenz marshalling yard.

This remarkable blog is a little longer that usual but it gives a good idea of train watching in some parts of Switzerland. A great place to watch trains is at Liestal. The station is oriented roughly north south so that the trains are always well lit with the sun behind the viewer. Liestal is located just south of Basel near the entrance to the Muttenz yards, one of the largest in Europe. Freight trains heading to and from northern Italy via the Gottard or the Lotschberg tunnels originate here as well as trains for the rest of Switzerland. Northbound freights pass through Liestal on their way to Germany.

Passenger traffic is considerable with local S-Bahn trains mixed in with regional passengers, Intercity IC2000 trains, as well as fast international passenger trains from Zurich, Lucerne and Milan on their way to France and Germany. Among all this are light engine moves in and out of Muttenz as locos depart or return from assignments elsewhere in northern Switzerland.

All of this traffic passes through the Liestal SBB station with its two platforms and one through track. The regular Swiss timetable means that there is a very predictable 30 minutes cycle of fast trains passing through at regular intervals followed by stopping passenger trains with freight trains following through at main line speeds, running fast to clear the main for a fast passenger behind as the cycle repeats. All this is also happening in the opposite direction. Within an hour, it is possible to see most trains and locomotive types operating in Switzerland.

The station also has the usual Buffet de Gare and Kiosk store to get a coffee or Magnum while waiting for the next train.

The following pictures were all taken by Paul over the course of an hour at Liestal

This shows the very restricted layout at Liestal which is in the process of being improved. Ssouthbound trains usually use the platform track, No. 1. Northbound trains have a through road, No. 2, and a platform road, No. 3. Tracks 1 and 2 are bidirectional. The green tracks to the south west are the narrow gauge Waldenburgerbahn, the only 750mm passenger carrying line in Switzerland which is being re-gauged to 1 metre.

Northbound trains

Loco hauled regional passenger train with an Re 4/4 making its last stop before Basel

Freight with two SBB Cargo Re 4/4s follow the passenger

Non-stop regional SBB passenger train 

SBB IC2000 from Zurich making a stop at Liestal. 

We caught this train an hour later on its return to Zurich

With the northbound IC2000 on its way, the road is clear for German ICE1 heading on its way from Zurich. It is non-stopping and is running on the middle track. Liestal station offers good views of trains to the south.

Same train as its sweeps away from Liestal at high speed

Immediately following the Germans are the Italians with a Trenitalia Class 610 Pendolino. This will have come up from Milan with stops in Lucern or Zurich.

With the two high speed trains out the way, there is time to put a freight train through. This is an SBB Cargo train powered by a Re 10/10 (Re 6/6 paired with an Re 4/4). Until the 1990s, Re 6/6s were some of the most powerful locomotive on regular service.

We cross platforms to catch a train back to Zurich. While waiting there is another freight heading north, this time a BLS HUPAC train powered by a TRAXX which carries trucks across the Alps. There is a passenger car behind the locomotive for the truck drivers to take rest

The rear of the Hupac train

Southbound Trains

TGV bound for Zurich. this is running at slow speed because of the need to use track No. 2.

Re 460 powered regional passenger train

Southbound Intercity IC2000 from Basel

Spotting a gap in the schedule behind the IC2000, the dispatcher routes a diesel switcher hauling a dead Re 4/4 presumably for servicing at the SBB workshops at Yverdon-les-Bains.

Following the switcher, there is still some time before the next passenger train is due so a SBB Cargo freight get cleared to leave. It will need to move fast to stay ahead of the trains behind it. The locos are a powerful Re 10/10 combination so this should not be a problem

The dispatcher decides there is just enough time for one more southbound light engine move. An Re 4/4 can be seen in the distance. It is sometimes hard to take pictures of trains in Switzerland since there is often a train in the way.

An SBB Intercity IC2000 is the next southbound train and is running right on time. This train was not stopping in Liestal.

Southbound regional passenger following the IC2000. This is a stopping train.

Once the stopping passenger train is on its way, there is time for more freight trains, this time a BLS freight powered by a Re 465 and a brown Re 4/4 dating from the 1960s. This freight passes through the station at main line speed because it needs to stay out of the way of high speed German train following behind.

Next south train is a high speed ICE1 train of the German Deutsche Bahn presumable heading for Zurich.

Final southbound train we see is our own IC2000 train taking us back to Zurich

There you have it. Nineteen trains in one hour - this is not exceptional, we have seen more. Paul didn't take pictures of the S-Bahn FLIRTs so its was probably closer to 23 and we didn't take account of the narrow gauge trains. A similar pattern is repeated throughout the day. A word of caution, make sure you go to the toilet before starting otherwise you are bound to miss something interesting.

This video gives a good idea of the traffic.The second clip shows a Hupac train of trucks with the passenger car next the locomotive