Basel–Pratteln railway line

The Basel–Pratteln railway line is a 1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) railway line in Switzerland. It runs 6.2 kilometres (3.9 mi) from Pratteln to the border of Basel-Stadt, across the river Birs from St. Jakob-Park, where it connects with the Basel tram network. The line was built by the Basellandschaftliche Ueberlandbahn [de] in 1921 and is now owned by Baselland Transport. Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe operates line 14 of the Basel tram network over the line.

Basel–Pratteln
A BVB tram crosses the Schlossstrasse in 1987, near the terminus in Pratteln
Overview
Owner	Baselland Transport
Service
Services	14
Operator(s)	Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe
History
Opened	22 January 1921 (1921-01-22)
Technical
Line length	6.2 km (3.9 mi)
Track gauge	1,000 mm (3 ft 3+3⁄8 in) metre gauge
Electrification	600 V DC
Route map Legend Basel tramway network Birs 0.0 Schänzli 0.6 Freidorf 1.0 Käppeli 1.6 Zum Park 1.9 Schützenstrasse 2.4 Muttenz Dorf 3.1 Rothausstrasse 3.7 Warternburg Schlaufe Adler tunnel [de] 4.3 Lachmatt Adler tunnel [de] 5.0 Kästeli 5.5 Gempenstrasse SBB to Basel 6.0 Bahnhofstrasse Pratteln 6.2 Schlossstrasse SBB to Olten [1] This diagram: view talk edit

History

The Basellandschaftliche Ueberlandbahn [de] opened a line from the existing tram network at Schänzli, on the river Birs, to Muttenz, on 22 January 1921. Trains continued over the Basel tram network and terminated at Aeschenplatz [de]. The line was further extended to its present terminus in Pratteln, near the Swiss Federal Railways station there, on 20 October 1922.^[2] The line was electrified from opening at 550 V DC, later increased to 600 V DC.^[3] A planned extension from Pratteln to Liestal was never built.^[4] In 1974, the Basellandschaftliche Ueberlandbahn merged with three other companies to form Baselland Transport.^[5] A 3.2-kilometre (2.0 mi) proposed extension northeast to the Salina Raurica [de] area was rejected by voters in 2021.^[6]

Route

The line begins from a turning loop 160 metres (520 ft) south of the Swiss Federal Railways station at Pratteln. It runs east-west, roughly parallel to the standard gauge Hauenstein Railway, and runs through the municipalities of Pratteln and Muttenz. The line is double-tracked, running at-grade on dedicated right-of-way. It crosses the river Birs near St. Jakob-Park, where it connects with the Basel tram network.^[1]

Operation

Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe operates line 14 of the Basel tram network over the line. Trams operate at frequent intervals from Pratteln via Aeschenplatz to Dreirosenbrücke [de], on the north side of Basel.^[7]