Rail line
We tested the replacement buses between Friborg and Bern
The total closure of the CFF line for eight weeks upsets the daily life of thousands of pendulums. Hard, hard to change your morning routine. Testimonies on board.
70 replacement buses were called to the rescue, the time for SBB to carry out major work on the line between Friborg and Bern.
Tella ults Neie Were
- The Friborg-Berne railway axis is completely interrupted until the end of August to allow major work on the line.
- Buses circulate every ten minutes between the two cities to replace the trains.
- Travelers welcome effective organization despite a doubled journey time.
- Pendulars adapt by favoring telework or by finding accommodation solutions, near their workplace.
Since June 27, the basement of the Friborg station has lived to the incessant rhythm of buses that compensate for the total closure of the CFF line between Friborg and Bern, because of large -scale work On the ways. A spectacular substitution device – two buses leaving every ten minutes – must ensure the connection between the two cities for eight weeks. The journey is extended by half an hour.
This Wednesday morning, the Quai Q is in effervescence. This is where thousands of pendulums embark every day to the capital. A total of 70 buses and 150 drivers are mobilized for this XXL operation until August 25. An army of patrollers in yellow, pink and blue vests guide travelers in the middle of this jungle of vehicles. Beware of the one who crosses the pedestrian passage without having been invited to it, while a driver is about to press the gases. He will be immediately reprimanded.
“Everything was very well thought out”
In the middle of this timed choreography, Rodrigue, a young 22 -year -old business employee, does not appear as the most awakened pendulum of the station this morning. “I still have the sleep of a teenager, so every minute lost in the morning knows my morale. And with these replacement buses, I drink very exactly 45, “he laughs, clinging to his iced coffee. The young man must go to a village in the Hauts de Bienne. The capital is only a step.
“Without wanting to pose as a victim, it is for passengers like me – who multiply the correspondence – that this piece of bus by bus is the most painful,” sighs Rodrigue. To avoid this morning chambard, he will go to sleep with his cousin in Landeron from next week. “There, I couldn’t, because his whole family was on vacation. Fortunately they come back quickly! ”
On board the 7:52 am bus, several employees of the Confederation, particularly admiring the organization: “Admittedly, the journey time is doubled, but there are staff everywhere to guide travelers, in Berne as in Friborg. Everything was very well thought out, it is reassuring, ”slips one of them. One of his colleagues is a bit more severe: “In the morning it’s okay, but the bus is sometimes stuck in traffic jams at the end of the day. A problem that we avoid with the train. “
Liquidate the work in two months
Comfortably installed on the upper floor of the bus, Benoît de Diesbach does not seem well disturbed by the temporary abandonment of the rail. This genealogist specializing in the research of heirs goes to Bern to search in the federal archives. “I go there once every two weeks, so it’s not too painful compared to those who hang five times a week,” he smiles. No need to grumble because “this work must be done”.
Some rows behind the genealogist, a man taps on his laptop. No time to waste when you are a professor of economics at the Haute École specialized Bernese. He too believes that logistics is “very well organized”. “I had some apprehensions on the schedule at the start, because I cannot afford to arrive late, but everything is fluid. I am positively surprised. “
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Her 89-year-old father, who lives in Berne, makes the opposite journey once a week to keep his grandson who stayed at home. “He got lost the first time, but was very quickly helped by the station staff.” Would the professor have preferred that the maintenance work will be staggered over several years-at night and the weekend-so as not to rush the pendulum? “No, I believe in the expertise of professionals. If they judge that it is more effective to block the whole line for two months, it is that it is probably the best option. ”
The bus leaves the highway, a screaming engine. Thinking of being close to the arrival, a woman gets up from her seat. “Say Madame, the bus still has to cross the city. It will take ten minutes, ”advises her kindly the passenger installed in front of her. Next to them, another traveler – sitting in the opposite direction of walking – suddenly seems to suffer from cinetosis. He will just avoid a disaster, stunned by the crackling voice of the driver in the speakers. The arrival is imminent.
TPF satisfied with the device
To avoid the vagaries of motorized traffic, some workers plan to increase their share of telework this summer. When they can. In the case of Charlotte Buser, a young 31 -year -old Friborg journalist who has just won a position in Bern, better go physically to the office. Comfort level, the private cars committed for the system are “great”, she underlines. “We never lack space.”
But that does not buy the few inconveniences of these shuttles: “The journey times announced on the CFF app are not always correct. The other day, I took an hour forty to go home from work, while the app indicated me a nine trip hour. On a day, it is obviously not very serious, but if it continues all summer, I am afraid that the cumulative effect is very tiring. ” However, she remains understanding: “I will not throw the stone into the SBB. We see that they do their best. “
For their part, the Friborg public transport (TPF)mandated by SBB to coordinate the replacement system, draw a first positive assessment after the first days of this unprecedented operation. “Most customers are aware and are understanding despite the inconvenience,” says Jérôme Gachet, TPF communication manager.
However, he is delighted to finish the week from June 30 to July 4, “certainly the most difficult” to exploit for the company. “First of all, because the pendulums are not all on vacation yet. Then, because many groups and school races borrow these lines these days. ” Despite this large burden, the transfer of the train to the bus “is good”. During rush hour, “we are actually dependent on traffic, but we ensure, with a few exceptions, all correspondence.”
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