Winterthur railway station (German: Bahnhof Winterthur) is the principal railway station of Winterthur, in the Swiss canton of Zürich.[5][1] The station is listed on the Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National Significance.[6]

Winterthur
Central pass-through railway station
Renaissance-style building with twin cupola-topped towers
The station frontage (east side) in 2008
General information
LocationBahnhofplatz 5–9
Winterthur
Switzerland
Coordinates47°30′1.18″N 8°43′25.63″E / 47.5003278°N 8.7237861°E / 47.5003278; 8.7237861
Elevation438 m (1,437 ft)
Owned bySwiss Federal Railways
Line(s)
Distance
[1]
Platforms
Tracks9
Train operators
Connections
Trolleybus
Trolleybus
Stadtbus Winterthur [de] 1 2 2E 3
Bus
Bus
Airport
Airport
Direct line to/from Zürich Airport with in 0:13h, S24 in 0:17h or other connections with one change
Construction
Architect
Architectural style1896: Neorenaissance
Other information
Fare zone120 (ZVV)[3]
WebsiteBahnhof Winterthur
History
Opened
  • 1855 (1855) (wooden construction)
  • 1860 (1860) (total reconstruction)
  • 1894-96 (1894-96) (total reconstruction)
Rebuilt
  • 1875 (1875)
  • July 1988 (1988-07): car park deck
  • 2000 (2000): new building "Stadttor"
  • 2012-2013 (2012-2013): Bahnhofplatz reconstruction
  • 2015-21 (2015-21): renovation and major enhancements
Previous namesWinterthur Hauptbahnhof
Passengers
2023110'900 per weekday[4] (SBB)
Rank3 out 1'159
Services
Preceding station Swiss Federal Railways Following station
Zürich Hauptbahnhof
Terminus
EuroCity St. Gallen
towards München Hbf
Zürich Airport IC 1 Wil
towards St. Gallen
IC 5
St. Gallen
towards Rorschach
Zürich Airport
towards Brig
IC 8 Frauenfeld
towards Romanshorn
Zürich Airport IC 81
Zürich Airport IR 13 Wil
towards Chur
Zürich Airport
towards Lucerne
IR 75 Frauenfeld
towards Konstanz
Preceding station Zurich S-Bahn Following station
Kemptthal
towards Rapperswil
S7 Terminus
Effretikon S8
Stettbach
towards Aarau
S11 Oberwinterthur
towards Seuzach
Winterthur Grüze
Stettbach
towards Brugg AG
S12 Hettlingen
towards Schaffhausen
Winterthur Grüze
towards Wil
Zürich Stadelhofen S23 Frauenfeld
towards Romanshorn
Kemptthal
towards Zug
S24 Andelfingen
towards Thayngen
Oberwinterthur
towards Weinfelden
Terminus S26 Winterthur Grüze
towards Rüti ZH
S29 Oberwinterthur
S33 Hettlingen
towards Schaffhausen
S35 Winterthur Grüze
towards Wil
Winterthur Töss
towards Bülach
S41 Terminus
Effretikon
towards Aarau
SN1
Limited service
Terminus SN3
Limited service
Hettlingen
Effretikon
towards Würenlos
SN6
Limited service
Terminus
Winterthur Töss
towards Bülach
SN41
Limited service
Preceding station St. Gallen S-Bahn Following station
Terminus SN22
Limited service
Winterthur Grüze
SN30
Limited service
Oberwinterthur
towards Romanshorn
Location
Winterthur is located in Switzerland
Winterthur
Winterthur
Location in Switzerland
Winterthur is located in Canton of Zürich
Winterthur
Winterthur
Winterthur (Canton of Zürich)
Map

Winterthur is Switzerland's fifth busiest station,[7] and is a major node between Switzerland's largest railway nucleus in Zürich and places in Eastern Switzerland (such as St. Gallen and Schaffhausen), as well as Germany (Munich), and Austria (Vorarlberg). The station is served by trains on Zürich's suburban S-Bahn network, as well as by regional and intercity trains, with all through passenger trains making a stop. It is directly linked to Zürich FlughafenZurich Airport's railway station – within 15 minutes travelling time seven times per hour. Zürich Hauptbahnhof can be reached with up to 16 direct connections per hour, the fastest of which takes 22 minutes. The station has five standard-gauge platforms serving nine tracks and is the central node of the local Stadtbus Winterthur [de] network and regional bus services (e.g. PostBus Switzerland). All public transport in and around Winterthur is part of the canton of Zürich's integrated fare network ZVV.

Location

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Bahnhof Winterthur is centrally located, at the northwestern edge of the city centre.

History

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In 1855, the first temporary station building was built in Winterthur as a timber framed structure. The design of the building was by A. Beck, who also managed the construction. The building was sold in 1860 to the City of Zurich, which wanted to move and rebuild it in the vicinity of the Kornhaus. Most likely, it was used for the construction of the Kornhauswirtschaft, as these two buildings bear a very great resemblance.[8]

 
Entrance to the station building, 2011

Five years after the opening of the provisional building, the first real station was built, under the direction of the architect Jakob Friedrich Wanner, who, together with A. Beck, was responsible for the design. The builder, Meier, came from Winterthur, and the train shed was built by the firm Benkiser of Pforzheim.[9] In 1875, its first expansion was completed, to coincide with the commencement of the Winterthur operations of the Tösstalbahn and the Nationalbahn. This expansion consisted of an extension to each side of the station building equal to the width of four window bays, in order to create space for new waiting rooms.

Further renovations in 1894−96 left the station building in its present form. These renovations, proposed by the architect Ernst Jung and Otto Bridler, produced a station building in Renaissance style; the Federal Palace of Switzerland served as a template.

In 1944, the present day tracks 8 and 9 were added. In 1980, the station was again extended by two tracks (the current platforms 1 and 2), which were used for the Tösstal line and for postal trains. Today, S-Bahn trains to Wil depart from the Postal train track.

In 1988, the two-storey parking deck was built over the station yard. In 2000 followed the construction of the Stadttor Winterthur between the station building and the EPA department store, which is now a Coop City department store.

The term Hauptbahnhof or HB (for main railway station) is no longer used by Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF FFS), the station's owner and operator, but is still sometimes used colloquially. Although the station's name appears simply as Winterthur on the station signs and on schedule information, the name Hauptbahnhof is still used for the bus stop in front of the station.

Layout

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Winterthur is a through station with five platforms and nine tracks. Tracks 1 and 2 terminate on the east side of the station, while the remaining tracks run through. The platform nearest the station is a side platform serving track 1 only, while the next nearest platform faces both the terminating track 2 and the through-running track 3. This arrangement is similar to a bay platform; platforms that a physically adjacent to station building are called Hausperron. Three island platforms serve tracks 4–9.[10][11]

In front of the station, on the line towards Zurich, is the former goods station. It was closed in 1995–1996, and serves today only for the storage of trains. As a replacement for the closed structure, a maintenance facility was built at the Oberwinterthur railway station.[clarification needed]

Services

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As of the December 2022 timetable change, the following services stop at Winterthur:[12] On weekends, there are also six nighttime S-Bahn services (SN1, SN3, SN6, SN41, two SN) offered by ZVV.[13]

Urban public transport

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Winterthur is the central bus station of the local Stadtbus Winterthur [de] bus operator and therefore also the most important hub of the Winterthur trolleybus system. All but two of the city bus lines stop at the Hauptbahnhof. Additionally, several regional Stadtbus lines, along with PostAuto lines, all stop there. Only the lines that serve Wiesendangen and a few villages northeast of Winterthur depart from Oberwinterthur station instead. The Winterthur bus station is the largest in the canton of Zurich.[citation needed]

Stadtbus Winterthur

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Lines 1–3 are trolleybus lines. The remaining lines are operated exclusively by low-floor buses. Normally, articulated buses run on lines 5, 7 and 14. On the remaining lines, conventional (rigid chassis) buses provide the services.

As of the December 2023 timetable change, the following routes serve Winterthur:[10]

Line Route
1 Töss – HB – Oberwinterthur
2 Wülflingen – HB – Seen
2E Waldegg – HB – Schloss
3 Rosenberg – HB – Oberseen
4 HB – Breite – HB (circle route)
5 Technorama – HB – Dättnau
7 HB – Schlosstal – Winterthur Wülflingen
10 HB – Oberwinterthur
12 HB – Bruderhaus – HB

Regional lines

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The yellow numbers are PostAuto lines, and the blue numbers are Stadtbus Winterthur bus lines:[10]

Line Route
660 HB – Brütten – Nürensdorf – Bassersdorf (- Flughafen)
670 HB – Neftenbach – Berg am Irchel – Flaach – Rafz
671 HB – Neftenbach – Hettlingen
674 HB - Rosenberg - Seuzach
676 HB – Rutschwil – Henggart
680 HB – Elsau – Schlatt – Elgg/Girenbad b. Turbenthal

Nighttime buses

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Several nighttime bus (German: Nachtbus) lines are operated hourly on Friday to Saturday and Saturday to Sunday from 01:30 to 04:30. As the last regular buses usually depart from HB at 0.50 and the first such buses start running again from 05:30, one can therefore speak of a continuously operating network when the nighttime buses are running.

The nighttime buses operate on the following lines, but only outwards; there are no return services.

Line Route
N59 HB – Strochenbrücke – Schlosstal - Niederfeld - Bahnhof Wülflingen
N60 HB – Oberwinterthur – Seuzach - Adlikon bei Andelfingen (Postauto)
N61 HB – Hegi – Elsau - Wiesendangen - Sulz - Rickenbach – Ellikon - Altikon – Thalheim - Dinhard - Welsikon
N64 HB – Rosenberg – Seuzach – Flaach – Buch am Irchel - Riedt bei Neftenbach (Postauto)
N65 HB – Waldheim – Eishalle – Oberseen
N66 HB – Töss – Brütten – Nürensdorf - Bassersdorf – Lindau - Kemptthal
N67 HB – Wülflingen – Neftenbach – Pfungen – Dättlikon
N68 HB – Seen – Zell – Turbenthal – Wila (Postauto)

Panorama

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Concourse viewed from platform 3 (directly with one's back to the station building)

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Eisenbahnatlas Schweiz. Cologne: Schweers + Wall. 2012. pp. 12–13. ISBN 978-3-89494-130-7.
  2. ^ "Stadt Winterthur | Winterthur City" (PDF). ZVV. 15 December 2019. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  3. ^ "Tarifzonen" (PDF) (in German). Zürcher Verkehrsverbund. 13 December 2020. Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  4. ^ "Passagierfrequenz (2023)". Lausanne, Switzerland: SBB CFF FFS. 2023. Retrieved 4 August 2024 – via data.sbb.ch – SBB DATA PORTAL.
  5. ^ map.geo.admin.ch (Map). Swiss Confederation. Retrieved 2011-12-02.
  6. ^ "Schweizerisches Inventar der Kulturgüter von nationaler Bedeutung - Zürich" [Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National Significance - Zurich] (PDF) (in German). Swiss Confederation. 2011. Retrieved 2011-09-13.
  7. ^ "Bahnhöfe" [Railway Stations] (in German). Swiss Federal Railway. 2018. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  8. ^ Stutz 1976, p. 110
  9. ^ Stutz 1976, p. 152
  10. ^ a b c Swiss Federal Railways (December 2022). "Bahnhof Winterthur" (PDF). Retrieved 13 January 2024.
  11. ^ "Stop: platform length (body)". Swiss Federal Railways. Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  12. ^ "Abfahrt: Bahnhof Winterthur" (PDF). Swiss Federal Railways (in German). 11 December 2022. Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Night timetable and line network".
  14. ^ "Nighttime network | at weekends" (PDF). Retrieved 2023-10-08.

Cited works

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  • Stutz, Werner (1976). Bahnhöfe der Schweiz [Railway Stations of Switzerland] (in German). Zürich: Verlag Berichthaus. ISBN 3-85572-018-5.
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