Wednesday 3 September 2025 Operations around Bulach

 Our objective today was to see a little more about the gravel train working in the Bulach area and to see if there are many of the Re 620 locomotives still around. The Re620s are about 40 years old and SBB is gradually taking them out of service. One area where they are still used is the gravel trains from the quarries at Huntwagen Will, just north of Bulach. While waiting for our train at Zurich we saw one of the Girouno train sets ready to go to Venice. Alongside it was a Re 420 on an overnight train. Like the Re 620s the Re 420s are gradually being replaced.

The Girouno train to Venice

Re 420 arriving with an overnight train

Our first train was from Zurich to Bulach. On arrival we were surprised to find that the siding that had held six 620 locomotives that we saw last week was now completely empty although two different 620s were in a different siding. There was a train of loaded travel cars on the platform road with a 620 at the head waiting the road. Unfortunately, we just missed a gravel train going on the line to Winterthur we only saw the back end of it. 

A Re 620 waiting for the road to leave Bulach

Two Re 620s waiting at Bulach for work

We went on to Huntwagen Wil to find a loaded train ready to go. A 620 arrived from the Bulach direction, made a brake test and took off.

The Re 620 about to leave with a loaded train

A little whimsey at Huntwangen Wil

At Huntwangen Will a lady kindly allowed us to use her lawn to take a picture of a passenger train on the viaduct over the Rhein river

The local diesel switcher was also active. It brought in a trainload ready to depart and had gone back for another one

The diesel switcher brings in the next loaded gravel train at Huntwangen Will

We took a train to Schaffhausen and had lunch at the Migros restaurant. We then walked around the old town.


 
The dates on these buildings go back to the 1600s

 We took a train back to Bulach. A train load of empties arrived from the Winterthur direction with two 620s on the head end.

We came back to Zurich via Winterthur. All in all a very successful day for seeing Re 620s.


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