Residents in Germany and Switzerland could soon take advantage of cheap train connections run by German budget rail provider FlixTrain. The company confirmed that routes between Swiss cities, Munich and Berlin are now in the pipeline.

FlixTrain planning Berlin-Munich-Switzerland routes

Speaking to the Swiss daily Blick, a spokesperson for FlixTrain said that the company is extremely keen to start new budget rail routes between Germany and Switzerland, which are being discussed with the European Union (EU) and the Federal Office of Transport.

The company is most keen to run services between Munich and Zurich via the Swiss cities of Winterthur and St. Gallen, and expand its existing Berlin to Basel Bad Bahnhof line to Zurich. 

"We do not want to interfere with the dense Swiss network, but rather offer an attractive alternative for customers on international routes," the spokesperson noted, adding that only long-distance routes would be offered by the company.

Though FlixTrain services are typically slower than their Deutsche Bahn counterparts, with journeys between Basel and Berlin costing as little as 10 euros, the company offers significantly cheaper tickets.

In response to the announcement, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) said they were in contact with FlixTrain, but did not comment on whether the services would be a collaboration.

FlixTrain routes greenlit after Swiss-EU deal

FlixTrain’s announcement comes as the Swiss government concludes its new deal with the EU. Under the plans presented in December, Switzerland has to grant EU rail firms access to more of the public transport network. This would allow providers to run rail services deep into the alpine nation, without collaboration with SBB.

Currently, SBB works in collaboration with Deutsche Bahn, ÖBB and Trenitalia to run international rail routes, and jointly runs TGV Lyria with SNCF on routes to and from France. 

This means that FlixTrain can currently only run routes to Basel, because Basel Badische Bahnhof is not operated by SBB but by Deutsche Bahn.

FlixTrain viability hinges on many factors

But FlixTrain faces a few more obstacles. Speaking in December, Swiss Economics Minister Guy Parmelin (Swiss People’s Party) said that while FlixTrain could run in Switzerland, it could only do so if it remains punctual and doesn’t get in the way of SBB services. SBB trains had a 92,5 percent punctuality rate in 2023, compared to just 64 percent of Deutsche Bahn’s long-distance trains arriving on time in the same year.

Next is departure times: while the government wants FlixTrain to operate late at night and early in the morning, the company spokesperson said they wanted to operate at peak times. "For example, in Zurich, all trains depart on the hour, after which the station becomes quiet, and that is exactly when we would try to schedule a departure," they noted.

Another sticking point concerns tickets. Parmelin added that “foreign railway companies must adhere to the Swiss tariff system,” meaning they must accept local Swiss public transport passes. FlixTrain disagrees, arguing that it is an international rail service and should be exempt.

On the matter of workers, Swiss Trade Union Federation President Pierre-Yves Maillard (SP) said he worried FlixTrain employees would not be paid an adequate salary, since Swiss salaries are so much higher than German salaries. The SEV rail workers’ union added that the arrival of FlixTrain could spark a race to the bottom with SBB when it comes to staff wages.

Finally, much of FlixTrain’s arrival in Switzerland hinges on the latest agreement between the government and the EU. The Swiss government is expected to put the deal to the people through four referendums, with political parties telling Blick that they will likely not be held before 2027. 

Whether FlixTrain can reach a deal and put trains on the tracks before the deal is passed, remains to be seen.

This article was originally featured on IamExpat in Switzerland.

Thumb image credit: Gestur Gislason / Shutterstock.com