St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line

St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line

The St. Margrethen-Lauterach line or Bahnstrecke St. Margrethen-Lauterach is a 9.580-kilometre (5.953 mi) long, single-track, electrified railway line in the Lake Constance region. It connects St. Margrethen station in the Swiss canton of St. Gallen with the Lauterach Nord junction in the Austrian state of Vorarlberg, where it joins the Vorarlberg line. The route is owned and operated by Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) and is mainly used by the border station in St. Margrethen.

St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line History

The Vorarlberg Railway opened the connecting line between the Chur-Rorschach line and the Vorarlberg line on 23 November 23 1872. The first through express train between Zürich and Munich ran just under a year later, on 1 November 1873. The line, as with most of the Austrian railway network, was nationalized prior to World War I. The line was electrified on 2 January 1949.

Currently, local passenger service over the route is provided by the S3 of the Vorarlberg S-Bahn, which operates every half-hour between St. Margrethen and Bregenz. Additional long-distance EuroCity trains operate over the route between Zürich and Munich but make no intermediate stops.

By 2025 the line will be modernized and partially expanded to include two tracks, shortening travel times. Additional improvements will include improved noise protection for residents, flood protection, reopening the Lauterach West station, and converting the Lustenau and Hard-Fussach stations to be barrier-free.

St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line Overview

St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line Locale: Vorarlberg
St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line Track Gauge: 1,435 mm (4 ft 8+1/2 in) standard gauge

St. Margrethen-Lauterach Line Map Legend

SBB from Rorschach
0.0 km
0 mi
St. Margrethen
SBB to Buchs
0.749 km
0.465 mi
SBB / ÖBB boundary
A13
1.604 mi
2.581 km
Rhine (Austria-Switzerland border)
International Rhine Regulation Railway
1.838 km
1.142 mi
Lustenau Markt (until 12 June 2011)
OMV siding
2.620 km
1.628 mi
Lustenau
Dornbirner Ach
6.483 km
4.028 mi
Hard-Fussach

8.424 km
5.234 mi
Lauterach West
ÖBB to Bludenz
ÖBB from Bludenz

9.580 km
5.953 mi
Lauterach Nord
ÖBB to Lindau

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