Bern station gets new underground RBS station by 2031

The major "Zukunft Bahnhof Bern" project is expanding Switzerland's second-largest railway station, which now handles about 60,000 passengers daily versus the roughly 16,000 it was originally designed for. Its centerpiece is a new RBS underground station, built 17 meters deep crosswise beneath the SBB tracks with two island platforms and a roughly one-kilometer access tunnel. Construction has been underway since July 2017, and overall completion is planned for 2031 after the original 2030 target was pushed back. Update (21 May 2026): On 20 May 2026 the Bern cantonal government (Regierungsrat) approved two supplementary credits totalling CHF 187 million to cover the additional costs of the SBB part of the project (public areas, Bubenberg access); the canton bears two thirds and the municipalities one third. Total project costs rise from CHF 1,217 million to about CHF 1,465 million (additional costs CHF 248 million, 2017 cost basis; SBB part CHF 562 million, RBS part CHF 791 million), and the upgraded station is expected to open in 2031. By the end of 2026 five of six platforms are to be raised, the RBS station is in interior fit-out, and five appeals are pending against the development plan for the Hirschengraben pedestrian passage. (LOK Report, 21 May 2026)