Swiss perspectives in 10 languages

Swiss biggest train travellers in Europe

The Swiss are the greatest users of rail transport in Europe, according to a survey by the International Railway Union (UIC). In 1998, the average Swiss travelled 1817 kilometres or 40 journeys.

The Swiss are the greatest users of rail transport in Europe, according to a survey by the International Railway Union (UIC). In 1998, the average Swiss travelled 1817 kilometres or 40 journeys.

The Danes came second, with 28 journeys per person, one more than in Luxembourg. Austrians clocked up 22 and the Dutch came fifth.

The greatest users of rail transport worldwide are the Japanese. The Japanese took the train an average 69 times per person each year, covering 1921 kilometres. The United States ranked last with a mere half journey per person.

According to the Swiss Public Transport Information Service, Switzerland has the greatest density of railway lines in the world. However, journeys with private rail companies, tramways and cable cars were not included in the survey. If they had been, the total distance travelled on average would rise to 2,700 kilometres.

From staff and wire reports

In compliance with the JTI standards

More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative

You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!

If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR