Tag: Limmattalbahn

Limmattalbahn reports 1.5 million passengers

After the first 100 days of operation, Aargau Verkehr AG(AVA) is taking positive stock of the new Limmattalbahn in terms of user numbers and punctuality. According to a media release, around 1.5 million passengers have used the railway since the start of regular service on 11 December 2022. On a weekday, the light rail system carries 16,000 passengers.

The busiest stations include Dietikon and Zurich Altstetten stations, the Zentrum stop in Schlieren, Oetwilerstrasse in Dietikon and at the Shoppi Tivoli shopping centre in Spreitenbach. The AVA emphasises the high punctuality: 97 percent of the light rail vehicles arrive at their destination with less than three minutes delay.

The commissioning was preceded by a good twelve years of planning and construction. Before the start of regular service in December, test and training runs were carried out in the second half of 2022 to ensure a functioning interaction between infrastructure, control and information systems. In daily passenger operations with higher loads, there were isolated disruptions and delays in the first weeks of operation, according to the AVA’s statement. These irregularities could be remedied by technical adjustments and optimisations to the vehicles and the systems. The initially tight transfer times were optimised in the first weeks of operation.

The railway operates on 92 per cent of its route on its own track independently of the rest of the traffic. Where it shares the route with individual traffic, traffic lights and barriers ensure safe operation. Since the start of operations, there have reportedly been seven collisions between passenger cars and light rail vehicles. In all cases, the cause was misbehaviour or inattention on the part of the motorists.

March 2023
Shoppi Tivoli takes over the Limmat Valley Railway station

With a ceremonial "key handover" the "Shoppi Tivoli" stop of the Limmattalbahn (LTB) was handed over to the Shoppi Tivoli shopping center by the operator Aargau Verkehr (AVA) on Monday. According to the Shoppi Tivoli media release, the management of Aargau Verkehr AG and Shoppi Tivoli Management AG and other guests, including the mayor of Spreitbach, Markus Mötteli, attended.

For Severin Rangosch, CEO Aargau Verkehr, the realization of the Limmattalbahn is a commitment to the region. One believes in their potential, Rangosch is quoted as saying.

Patrick Stäuble, center manager and CEO of Shoppi Tivoli, is quoted as saying that the management is "proud to be able to present the Shoppi Tivoli train station today". This is extremely important for the shopping center, but also for the adjacent facilities, including the environmental arena and the entire Tivoli Garden district with its housing, a medical center, shopping facilities and a kindergarten.

The Shoppi Tivoli is preparing for the station by expanding its service to the special needs of travelers. There are already five new fast food restaurants at the entrance to the LTB train station. And they are still accessible after the official closing time. According to CEO Stäuble, this will also include a restaurant that is open seven days a week.

“The stop will be directly under the CenterMall. So you get off the train, take the escalator and you're already in the Shoppi Tivoli. This connection will be a major milestone for us, because development is taking place along the Limmattalbahn," Stäuble was quoted as saying in an interview with the regional location promoter Limmatstadt AG.

September 2022
Phenomena presents the design of the main building

The design for the iconic buildings in the Phenomena exhibition was presented on July 6th in the new Limmattalbahn facility in Dietikon . According to a press release, the winning design for the main building, which is made entirely of wood, came from Professor Yves Weinand of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne ( EPFL ).

After a word of welcome from the mayor of Dietic, Roger Bachmann, overall project manager Urs J. Müller presented the winning project of the architectural competition. “Phenomena provides the basis for a better understanding of central themes of the present and future. Therefore, it demands an architecture that corresponds to its objectives and promotes the improvement of our planet through the understanding and use of modern science,” Müller is quoted as saying.

The main building on the Dietiker Niderfeld will be a structure made of regional logs. Intelligent robots process the natural trunks on site. You create a reusable plug-in system. After the phenomena, the wood can be used in other projects with almost no waste.

“With the buildings of the phenomena I want to show how one of the oldest building materials – wood – in connection with modern digital tools promotes local use and circularity,” Weinand is quoted as saying. The architect and head of the IBOIS laboratory for wooden structures at EPFL and founder of the Bureau d’Études Weinand has designed and built numerous emblematic wooden buildings. For example, the Saint Loup chapel, the new Vaud Parliament or, more recently, the Vidy Theater pavilion in Lausanne.

July 2022
Aargau Verkehr receives the first train of the new Limmattalbahn

Aargau Verkehr AG (AVA) has received the first of eight light rail vehicles for the new Limmattalbahn. The Tramlink, a low-floor tram that was broken down into three parts, was built by Stadler Rail , based in Bussnang TG, at its plant in Valencia, Spain, and brought to Bremgarten by heavy-duty truck. According to the press release , the parts were then reassembled there by technicians from Aargau Verkehr and Stadler Valencia to form the 44.3 meter long light rail system. By November, the Tramlink fleet will be successively completed with a further seven light rail vehicles.

From the timetable change on December 11, 2022, the eight Stadtbahn trains will transport passengers on the Limmattalbahn between Killwangen-Spreitbach and Zurich Altstetten. Line 20 then serves a total of 27 stops over a distance of 13.4 kilometers.

The first railway that has now been delivered is to be used in the Limmattal from summer when the infrastructure for the Limmattalbahn is ready. Test drives are made from the new depot in Dietikon.

According to AVA, the light rail vehicles procured jointly with BLT Baselland Transport AG belong to a modern and comfortable generation of vehicles. According to the AVA website , the Tramlink models are multi-articulated low-floor trams. With stepless entry and exit, you meet the requirements of the Disability Equality Act. In addition to full air conditioning, a passenger information system and comfortable seats, there are functional compartments with space for prams, wheelchairs and heavy luggage. All tram links are equipped with emergency call stations.

March 2022
"We anticipate a trend towards urban living"

To person
Stephan Attiger (FDP) has headed the Construction, Transport and Environment Department of the Canton of Aargau since 2013. At the national level, the 54-year-old represents the concerns of the canton as President of the Conference of Construction and Environment Directors (BPUK) and as a board member of the Conference of Energy Directors (ENDK). Born in Baden, he worked for a long time in the management of various Swiss companies before moving into politics. Among other things, he was Mayor of the City of Baden from 2006 to 2013 and Grand Councilor of the Canton of Aargau from 2009 to 2013.
You are in charge of the Construction, Transport and Environment Department of the Canton of Aargau. How do you have to imagine a typical working day for you?
In the last few months, my working days have been rather untypical due to covid: I was often in the home office, physical meetings were rare, and official events hardly took place at all. But not every day is the same, and the process depends heavily on the schedule. Basically, early in the morning I discuss the short-term issues and what is to come in the medium and long term with my closest employees. This is followed by meetings at various levels: government council, department, departments, bilateral discussions and meetings with external parties. In between I study files.
What milestones have you reached in terms of construction so far?
On the one hand, there are numerous larger and smaller buildings that I was allowed to inaugurate – not only in road construction, but also in the environmental sector, such as flood protection and renaturation projects. The latter also have a direct and positive effect on the residential and location attractiveness. In addition, we have created important foundations for the planning and subsequent implementation of mobility projects. With the last revision of the structure plan and the new cantonal mobility strategy mobilitätAARGAU, we want to coordinate settlement and traffic development. It therefore sets specific spatial accents and differentiated goals per room type for the individual means of transport. This in turn affects civil engineering and building construction. As a canton, we also act as a role model.
In what way?
For example, we are promoting more biodiversity and quality of stay in the outdoor spaces of our properties. We are looking for good solutions for how biodiversity issues can be taken into account in new buildings and in the maintenance of existing properties. Climate adaptation measures on buildings and in their surroundings make a contribution to achieving our climate policy goals. Another good example is the new building for the Office for Consumer Protection, in which we want to use wood from the Aargau forests as a sustainable building material.
What are currently the most important construction projects in building construction?
A major project currently underway in the area of cantonal real estate is the new construction of the police building in Telliquartier in Aarau. The units of the cantonal police, which are distributed across numerous locations, are to be brought together here. The building permit is already available. At the end of March, the canton also started the consultation process for the new location of a canton school in Fricktal. The hearings on the aforementioned new building for the Office for Consumer Protection and the project to merge the Aargau IT department into one building in Unterentfelden were concluded. All construction measures are implemented according to the principle of sustainability. During planning, special attention is paid to the gray energy bound in the building, and the time for new user requirements is coordinated with the time of repair.
Aargau has a large number of development areas that could offer space for additional residents. What are the plans here?
The cantonal structure plan designates 21 residential areas with areas that are predestined for high-quality settlement development. These should make a significant contribution to absorbing the expected population growth over the next 10 to 20 years in suitable, easily accessible locations. The areas should not only support the economical use of the soil with an appropriate density, but also become high-quality and attractive residential locations in the interests of sustainable development. This is the task of the municipalities, which determine the appropriate framework conditions and requirements in the land use planning. The canton supports them in this.
Area developments often stumble over traffic problems. Are you actively helping to find a solution?
It is effectively the case that high demands are placed on traffic planning, especially when it comes to site developments. This is because there are many unknowns about future claims. Here, traffic planning must provide a flexible framework in order to be able to react to the various requirements of investors. As far as the canton is concerned, it takes an active part or sets the framework conditions at the interfaces.
The project to extend the Limmattalbahn from Killwangen-Spreitenbach to Baden is currently making waves. What are your arguments to try to change your mind against the opponents of extra time?
The reporting in the media unfortunately gives a distorted picture of the general level of acceptance for this project. In the public hearing, the regional planning associations and all municipalities in the perimeter of the new tram route as well as most associations of the Limmattalbahn approved. The specifically proposed lines also received broad approval. We take the public's reservations that emerged from the hearing very seriously. For example, we have added additional variants for the lines. We will examine these and other objected points in more detail until they are determined in the structure plan and weigh them against the other cantonal interests and with the reservations mentioned.
Urban sprawl is also a problem in Aargau. Did the municipalities make mistakes in spatial development?
It is important to look to the future. In today's inventory, the potential that can be better used for sustainable development should be recognized. The revision of the Spatial Planning Act of 2013 has shown that the development needs of the next 20 years can be covered with the internal development of the settlement, i.e. the use of the existing reserves. We take the containment of urban sprawl very seriously. The 2015 structure plan finally defines the settlement area. The consumption of crop rotation areas has already fallen sharply.
How well or badly does the cross-community cooperation in spatial development work?
The regional planning associations play an important role in this cooperation. You also have to coordinate the municipal land use planning regionally in accordance with the building law. The coordination along the municipal boundaries works.
What does an optimal use of land resources look like for you?
The economical use of the soil is a central concern. Building upwards cannot, however, be unrestricted. The quality of the settlement and the townscape must always be taken into account. And in the case of underground structures, care must be taken to ensure that there is enough space left where large trees can be planted and water can seep away. This is crucial for avoiding heat islands in the settlement area and for the groundwater. Climate change poses great challenges for us. Optimal use of soil as a resource, sustainable settlement development and high-quality residential and workplace areas are not mutually exclusive.
The canton of Aargau is already well positioned when it comes to digitization. What are the future plans in the construction sector?
The digitization of construction projects with Building Information Modeling (BIM) is a big topic for us. We are currently working on around 20 BIM pilot projects. At the beginning of the year, the first master builder submission was put out to tender as part of a pilot project in the invitation process. Our goal is for BIM to be used as standard for project management in all new projects in the civil engineering department from 2025. Astra and SBB have the same “timetable”.
Pandemics have had an impact on urban planning before. Will Corona present urban planners with new challenges in the future?
Our villages and small towns are ideally suited for walking and cycling as places with short distances. This is a very good starting position, even in times of pandemic. In more and more places there is the possibility to work in co-working spaces. In this way, long travel times can be avoided, even if there is little space for home office. Attractive public spaces and easily accessible recreational opportunities are important. These are in great demand, and not just since Corona. I do not believe that this pandemic will completely turn city planning upside down.
According to an analysis by Wüest & Partner, the canton of Aargau has the highest potential for new living space and development areas alongside Geneva, Vaud and Zurich. What will have changed in Aargau in 10 years?
According to our forecast, we will get more attractive living space, especially in easily accessible locations, near train stations, in the centers of our villages and cities. Existing buildings are being converted, some of them are being built. We anticipate a trend towards urban living, not least because of the demographic development. More older people are drawn to central locations where they can benefit from services, short distances and cultural offerings. But living in the country will also remain attractive. Many of the around 100,000 single-family houses in Aargau are being renovated and brought up to date in terms of energy or even replaced by new buildings.

July 2021
"We are on course on all construction sites"

The first stage of the Limmattalbahn between Zurich Farbhof and Schlieren Geissweid has been in operation for over a year. The tram is well accepted and used extensively. “There is hardly any distinction between 'old' and 'new' routes,” says Oliver Obergfell from the VBZ media office. The Grüntrassee also made a very good impression after one year of operation. On average, around 5000 people use the Schlierem stops during the week – this roughly corresponds to the number of passengers on the former bus route 31. The Limmattalbahn (LTB) AG is also satisfied with the operation. "So far we have hardly had any complaints with regard to the infrastructure," says managing director Daniel Issler.

The second stage of the Limmattalbahn between Altstetten station and Zurich Farbhof and between Schlieren Geissweid and Killwangen-Spreitenbach has been under construction for a year. Here, too, everything is going according to plan: “The construction work is making very good progress. We are on course or even a little faster on all construction sites, ”says Issler. There are currently no signs of a cost overrun. The overall project manager also sees himself confronted with challenges: "In the second stage, construction work will take place over a length of around 10 kilometers at the same time." Then there are the large structures such as the Färberhüsli tunnel in Schlieren, the underpass at the Dreispitzkreuzung in Dietikon and the ramp structure in Killwangen.
A bus line could not cope with the increasing number of passengers
The construction of the Limmattalbahn is associated with restrictions and immissions for residents, entrepreneurs and road users along the route. LTB AG is aware that the construction site of the Limmattalbahn will cause some inconvenience. “We are therefore trying to build as quickly as possible in order to reduce the restrictions to a minimum. If someone contacts us with a concern, we endeavor to find individual solutions, ”says the managing director. Issler once again emphasizes the benefits of the continuous Limmattalbahn from Zurich Altstetten to Killwangen-Spreitenbach: "Public transport is being strengthened – the Limmattalbahn is a supplement to the existing S-Bahn and enables a continuous and reliable travel chain." The much-brought-up argument of the Limmattalbahn opponents – that an expansion of the existing bus networks in the region would have been enough and would have come more cheaply – is invalidated by the head of LTB AG: “The Limmattal is developing rapidly. Many innovations are still to come. A bus route could not cope with this growth. In addition, a bus always runs the risk of getting stuck in a traffic jam. "
The announcement of the Limmattalbahn has already triggered numerous construction activities along the route. Old buildings are being renewed, new commercial and residential buildings are being built. Issler expects this trend to continue and even intensify. The growth also exacerbates the already existing traffic problem in the Limmat Valley. Can the Limmattalbahn provide a remedy here? “One of the goals of the Limmattalbahn is to absorb most of the additional traffic caused by public transport. Since measures for individual motorized traffic are also being implemented at the same time, we are confident that road traffic will also become liquid as a result, ”says Issler.
The second stage should be completed in mid-2022. This is followed by test drives. Official operations are scheduled to begin when the timetable changes in December 2022. Then the Limmattalbahn covers a distance of 13.4 kilometers at an average speed of 22 km / h: from Zurich Altstetten via Schlieren, Urdorf, Dietikon, Spreitenbach to Killwangen. The tram stops 27 times and has a capacity for 260 passengers. The cantons of Zurich and Aargau, as well as the federal government, spent a total of 755 million francs on the first two stages.
The Aargau government is currently working on plans for a third stage: from Killwangen-Spreitenbach to Baden. In late summer 2020, the Grand Council decided to keep the route clear and to raise the continuation of the tram route in the cantonal structure plan from the previous status of “preliminary orientation” to the level of “interim results”. The extension of the Limmattalbahn thus has a good chance – but a few hurdles still have to be overcome before a final decision can be reached. The start of operations for the last stage, if it is actually implemented, is not expected before 2032. ■

October 2020
A city quarter including the Limmattalbahn

“Where Zurich has a future” is Schlieren's slogan. This also applies to the new Reitmen district, where 177 rental apartments for different generations and needs will be built in five buildings. All apartments would offer sophisticated floor plans, carefully selected materials and spacious balconies. Each of the five houses has its own character and its own color concept can be read on the homepage on which the project is presented. The urban development stands for the modern Schlieren, emphasize those responsible for the project. The settlement is to become a place with a high quality of life that offers contemporary living and commercial space for a wide audience. In addition, there is 1,500 square meters of commercial space, a spacious park and, from 2022, the stop of the new Limmattalbahn directly in front of the door. ■

October 2020
Regional 2025 – projects for diversity

The Limmattal – a diverse, coherent mosaic
Despite urban thrusts, the development and the initial situation are not the same everywhere. For example, Spreitenbach and Neuenhof are changing from the formative 1970s modernism to more urban locations, but the dynamic cannot be compared to Schlieren, for example, until now. Wettingen is also discussing densification, and the concept of the garden city, which has been so formative up to now, is being questioned.
It looks completely different on the right bank of the Limmat. The communities with their large single-family house areas look in amazement at the other side of the valley and watch the development from a distance. They are still villages and want to stay that way. This heterogeneity of the Limmat Valley, which can be interpreted as a difficulty, is above all its strength. In addition, with the formative landscape there is a kit that holds these pieces of the puzzle together. Above all the Limmat as namesake and identity bearer, as a unifying force of nature that meanders through the valley. But “spaces in between”, such as the Sulperg-Rüsler or Hüttikerberg-Sandbühl landscape corridors, are becoming increasingly important and are developing into a park landscape.
"City" is only of limited use as a guiding term for this diverse fabric and does not do justice to the differences in places and the role of the landscape as a framework for the whole. Experts therefore speak more of “urban landscapes” in order to do justice to this phenomenon. That is why the edge of the block, the square and the boulevard, as tried and tested city elements, are not always the cure-all. In doing so, it is often not considered that this does not correspond to the complex social, economic and spatial structures of the Limmat Valley. The implementation of this idea can be seen, for example, in the Limmatfeld, where the new structures have so far represented an island in the context of the surroundings and have not yet been able to form the desired lively center beyond the railway.
These new city modules are definitely a good contribution to the discussion about the future of the Limmat Valley, but they ignore many of the realities of the existing Limmat Valley and the sensitivities of the population. The starting point in the Limmat Valley is too complex to take just one approach. Industrial wastelands such as the Rietbach area in Schlieren or the Limmatfeld for consistent new urban building blocks are practically no longer available. Everything that is now added in the course of the consolidation must deal with the existing. The further construction of the Shoppi Tivoli in Spreitenbach requires different strategies than the densification of Wettingen or Neuenhof. And the strategies for the further development of the villages to the right of the Limmat require completely different recipes.
Overcoming boundaries – spatially and thematically
The whole thing becomes interesting in the combination of different strategies for the long-term further development of the Limmat Valley. In the longitudinal direction, the Limmattalbahn establishes the linear connection with high-density nodes along the stops. It is also exciting when the cross-connections are considered. So far, hardly trained, they have the potential to form completely new gravity lines: both in built-up space and in the landscape. The axes such as Schlieren-Unterengstringen or Dietikon-Fahrweid-Geroldswil, like the landscape corridors, offer an opportunity to connect the differences spatially and socially and to enable a new interaction across the longitudinal barriers.
This is also of great importance within the towns and cities themselves. Examples of this are various plans and concepts that must be pursued further: Schlieren would like to link the rapidly emerging new districts on both sides of the railway with the existing districts and the village center. In Dietikon there is the idea of a connection between Silbern and Niederfeld. Spreitenbach would like to extend the central axis as far as the Limmat, and Neuenhof is developing transversely to the main axis into “Neuenhof am See”. This requires new connections and bridges over the railway, the Limmat or over roads. These are not only spatial connections, but also bring long-term residents and newcomers closer to one another.
Growth and change therefore not only affect the areas of construction and mobility, but all areas of life of the population: The everyday life lived across borders is already reflected today in work, living and leisure behavior as well as in mobility and consumer behavior. What began with a visit to the Shoppi Tivoli in Spreitenbach in the 1970s will intensify with the construction of the Limmattalbahn and result in further investments. The cantons of Zurich and Aargau have therefore decided, together with 16 cities and municipalities in the Limmat Valley, to actively shape the development across borders using a new format. To this end, they founded an association in 2015, the “Regional Project Show Limmattal”.
To cope with the challenges and also to alleviate the “growing pains” in the Limmattal, the Regionale 2025 is pursuing a thematically broad approach which, in addition to the classic spatial planning issues, also includes the areas of culture and society. ■

October 2020