Organized as part of the 150e anniversary of the arrival of the first train in Saint-Imier, this evening allowed the speakers to debate on several themes linked to the La Chaux-de-Fonds – Bienne line, i.e. the problems, the avenues for improvement and its future.
The same issues two centuries later
Before that, the event followed by a little more than a hundred people started around ten minutes later than planned due to the delay of representatives… of the SBB and the Public Transport Office of the Canton of Bern. In the first part of the evening, railway worker Francis Daetwyler recalled the history of railways in the Bernese Jura. The author of the issue 150 years of railways in the Bernese Jura of the magazine Intervalles explained in particular that there are relationships between the issues of the 19the century and today in terms of rail transport.
“In Switzerland, we should not come to this”
The line linking La Chaux-de-Fonds to Bienne has been heavily criticized for several years in the Bernese Jura. The mayor of Saint-Imier Corentin Jeanneret indicated that this line raises major concerns within his municipality. “We see three main problems coming up: rolling stock, punctuality and insecurity. There are big problems. Some people tell me that they take three trains in advance to be sure of being on time. We should not come to this in Switzerland,” he exclaimed to the applause of the audience.
Manfred Bühler, mayor of Cortébert, also receives negative remarks from his fellow citizens on this line: “I am delighted with the efforts. I am satisfied that we have gone from bad to quite bad”, he quipped.
Swiss
