Zurich Airport railway station


Zurich Airport railway station is a railway station serving Zurich Airport in Switzerland. The station is located underneath the Airport Centre, the main ground-side passenger terminal of the airport, which is in the canton of Zurich and the municipality of Kloten. It is located within fare zone 121 of the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund.

History

When Zurich Airport first opened in 1948, the nearest railway was the single-track line from [Zürich Zürich Oerlikon railway station|Oerlikon railway station|Oerlikon] to Effretikon, forming a loop off the original main line of the Zurich to Winterthur line. This line passed through Kloten Balsberg and Kloten stations, which are respectively and from the airport terminal. In 1980 and in order to improve access to the airport, a new main line was constructed between Oerlikon and Effretikon. The new line passed under the airport terminal, and the airport railway station was opened. Originally the station was planned to be served only by intercity trains, but it is now served by a mixture of long distance and suburban trains.
The previous line from Oerlikon through Kloten Balsberg and Kloten to Bassersdorf was retained, and is used by suburban trains that do not call at the airport and freight trains. The section from Bassersdorf to Effretikon was abandoned, and trains off the Kloten line now join the new line for this section of their journey. Other suburban trains use the original main line through Dietlikon.

Layout and facilities

Train

The station is situated on the airport railway line between Oerlikon and Effretikon, which forms one variant of the Zurich to Winterthur main line. The station, which is entirely underground, has two island platforms serving four tracks, each with a length of. The platforms are linked to the Airport Centre, which contains the station ticket office, by escalators and lifts. The Airport Centre also contains several floors of retail and catering facilities, as well as access, via check-in and security, to the Airside Center and gate lounges.
Summary of track usage:
  • Track 1: EuroCity,,, towards ; towards.
  • Track 2:,, towards Winterthur.
  • Track 3:,,,,, towards.
  • Track 4:,, towards.

Bus and tram

The airport terminal complex also includes a bus station, served by regional bus lines, and a station on the Glattal light rail system, served by VBZ/VBG lines and, which connect to the Zurich tram network. These can be accessed from the station via the Airport Centre.
;Lines with selected stops:
Line : Bahnhofplatz/HB – Central – ETH/Universitätsspital – Seilbahn Rigiblick
– Milchbuck – Sternen Oerlikon – Bhf. Oerlikon Ost – Glattpark – Bhf. Glattbrugg – Bhf. Balsberg – Zurich Airport
Line : – Glatt – Bhf. Wallisellen – Glattpark – Bhf. Glattbrugg – Bhf. Balsberg – '''Zurich Airport '''

Operation

The station is served by approximately 300 trains per day, formed of a mixture of EuroCity InterCity and InterRegio trains, serving cities throughout Switzerland, as well as Zurich S-Bahn trains on lines S2, S16 and S24. All trains in southern direction call at Zürich Hauptbahnhof, the city's main railway station, with, for most of the day, some 13 trains per hour taking between 9 and 13 minutes for the journey. Some trains also serve other stations in Zurich.
The airport station is also linked to Konstanz, just over the border in Germany, by an hourly Swiss InterRegio train. Several daily EuroCity trains call at the airport station en route from Zürich Hauptbahnhof to Bregenz, and several German cities as far as Munich.

Services

the following services stop at Zurich Airport:
  • EuroCity : service every two hours between and, via .
  • InterCity:
  • * / : half-hourly service between or and ; hourly service to.
  • * / : hourly service between and ; service every two hours from Spiez to and.
  • InterRegio:
  • * : hourly service between and.
  • * : hourly service to, via.
  • * : hourly service between and.
  • Zurich S-Bahn:
  • * : half-hourly service to, via.
  • * : half-hourly service to, via.
  • * : half-hourly service between and ; trains continue from Winterthur to or.