Direct Trains to Berlin Now Departing from Swiss Valais Region
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Brig, Switzerland – December 14, 2025 – Travelers between the Valais region of Switzerland and Germany now have a faster, more convenient connection thanks to the launch of new direct train services. The Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) and Deutsche Bahn (DB) commenced the new route today, marking the most significant expansion of cross-border rail links in two decades.
The inaugural run, symbolically named “Matterhorn” in a ceremony held in Brig, will provide direct access to Mannheim, Frankfurt, and Berlin from Valais, eliminating the need for transfers. Conversely, residents and tourists in Germany – including cities like Frankfurt, Dortmund, cologne, Bremen, Berlin, and Hamburg – will enjoy streamlined access to the Swiss canton of Valais.
Increased Demand Drives expansion
The introduction of these direct services comes as cross-border rail travel between Switzerland and Germany surges in popularity. According to SBB data, the number of passengers traveling between the two countries has risen by over 50% in the last decade.Currently, more than 50 direct trains operate daily in both directions, demonstrating the growing demand for efficient rail connections. Swiss Federal Railways reports continued investment in infrastructure to accommodate this growth.
Background and Technical Overview
Cross‑border rail travel between Switzerland and Germany has evolved significantly since the early 1990s, when the first InterCity Express (ICE) units were allowed to run on Swiss tracks under the 1992 bilateral railway agreement. Initially, ICE services were limited to the Zurich‑Munich corridor, relying on EuroCity trains for most Swiss‑German connections. The rapid increase in passenger demand – a 50 % rise in bilateral traffic over the past decade – prompted the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) and Deutsche Bahn (DB) to reassess the network’s capacity and speed potential.
The strategic “Rail 2025” program, jointly endorsed by the swiss Federal Office of Transport (BAV) and the German federal Ministry of Transport (BMVI), identified the Lötschberg Base Tunnel (LBT) and its approaches as the bottleneck for north‑south ICE traffic.Between 2015 and 2022, a series of infrastructure upgrades – including the addition of a second track on the Basel‑Bern line, new signalling (ETCS level 2) and platform extensions at Brig, Basel SBB and Mannheim Hauptbahnhof – were financed with a combined public‑private investment of roughly €1.5 billion.
The rollout of the latest ICE 4 (class 416) multi‑system trainsets, equipped to operate under 15 kV AC (Switzerland), 25 kV AC and 15 kV AC (Germany) and featuring onboard ticket‑integration, made it technically feasible to run non‑stop services from the Valais city of Brig to major German hubs. After extensive test runs in 2023‑24, the timetable was finalized for a December 2025 launch, marking the largest Swiss‑German rail expansion since the opening of the Gotthard Base Tunnel in 2016.
Key Data & timeline
| Milestone | Year / Date | Key Details | Stakeholders |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 – First Bilateral ICE Agreement | June 1992 | Permission for DB ICE units to run on Swiss electrified lines (15 kV AC). Limited to Zurich‑Munich. | SBB, DB, BAV, BMVI |
| 2005 – Joint Cross‑Border Strategy | November 200
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