Sonceboz-Sombeval – Moutier railway line

Sonceboz-Sombeval-Moutier
GTW multiple unit - still owned by BLS in 2006 - in Moutier
Timetable field :	226
Route length:	25.1 km
Gauge :	1435 mm ( standard gauge )
Power system :	15 kV 16.7 Hz  ~
Legend SBB route from Biel / Bienne 48.28 Sonceboz-Sombeval 653  m above sea level M. SBB route to La Chaux-de-Fonds Tunnel de Pierre-Pertuis 1294 m 55.17 Tavannes 754  m above sea level M. CJ route to Le Noirmont Birs bridge Tavannes Birs bridge Reconvilier I Birs bridge Reconvilier II 58.02 Reconvilier 728  m above sea level M. Birs bridge Loveresse Birs bridge Loveresse / Pontenet Birs bridge Pontenet 60.12 Pontenet 712  m above sea level M. 61.79 Malleray - Bévilard 698  m above sea level M. 64.20 Sorvilier 681  m above sea level M. 67.04 Court 666  m above sea level M. Birsbrücke Court Tunnel Court I (12 m) Tunnel Court II (184 m) Verrerie-de-Moutier tunnel (604 m) SBB Jurabahn to Lengnau – Biel / Bienne 73.40 Moutier 529  m above sea level M. BLS - Weissenstein Line from Solothurn SBB Jura Railway to Delémont

The Sonceboz-Sombeval-Moutier railway is a single - track, standard - gauge railway line operated by the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB).

history

Tavannes station around 1880/1890

The line from Biel / Bienne via Sonceboz-Sombeval to Moutier was built by the Jura bernois (JB) and was part of the international connection from Bern to Delémont and on to Delle - Belfort or Basel . The Biel / Bienne-Sonceboz-Sombeval - Tavannes section was opened on April 30, 1874 together with the Sonceboz-Sombeval-Convers junction (La Chaux-de-Fonds). Two years later, on December 16, 1876, the Tavannes – Court section was opened together with the Moutier – Delémont line. On May 24, 1877, the missing link Court – Moutier followed.

In 1884 the Jura Bernois changed its name to Jura – Bern – Lucerne (JBL). On January 1, 1891, JBL was taken over by the Jura-Simplon-Bahn (JS), which was incorporated into the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) on May 1, 1903. Since the Grenchenberg Tunnel was opened on October 1, 1915, direct trains from Biel to Delémont have used the shorter and less steep line via Grenchen . The Sonceboz-Sombeval-Moutier line, which has become a branch line, has been operated electrically since July 15, 1934 .

Route description

Parallel to the line to La Chaux-de-Fonds, the trains leave Sonceboz-Sombeval station in order to climb up the valley after a long right-hand bend and drive through the tunnel through the Pierre-Pertuis . In Tavannes, travelers have the opportunity to change to the narrow-gauge trains of the Chemins de fer du Jura (CJ). The journey to Moutier continues along the Birs via Reconvilier and Malleray - Bévilard . The railway crosses the Birs seven times between Tavannes and Court. After crossing the Klus von Court , the trains reach Moutier, where they meet the newer and shorter connection from Biel through the Grenchenberg .

business

RABe 526 283 railcar departing from Tavannes station.

Since the Grenchenberg Tunnel was opened in 1915, only regional trains have been running on the Sonceboz-Sombeval-Moutier route . Today runs hourly one Regio Biel about Sonceboz to Moutier and continue on the Weissenstein line to Solothurn . This train is winged in Sonceboz-Sombeval , with the other part going to La Chaux-de-Fonds. To this end, the SBB took over 13 GTW multiple units from the BLS . In addition to the wing train, a regional train runs every hour from Sonceboz-Sombeval to Malleray-Bévilard.

literature

• Hans G. Wägli: Swiss rail network and Swiss rail profile CH + , in Schuber AS Verlag , Zurich, 2010, ISBN 978-3-909111-74-9
• Pascal Siegfried: International railway lines in the Jura. (PDF 3.2 MB) September 25, 2007, accessed April 2, 2014 . 

References and comments

1. ↑ timetable year 2014
2. ↑ SBB is modernizing the existing vehicle fleet. Press release by SBB, February 9, 2010, accessed on April 2, 2014 .