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A language barrier at SBB nearly caused a collision between a freight train and a regional train in Neuchâtel in the summer of 2025.
Keystone/Laurent Gillieron (Symbolbild)
In the summer of 2025, SBB narrowly avoided a disaster. Communication problems between French- and German-speaking employees nearly caused a collision between two trains.
In Neuchâtel last summer, a train collision was narrowly averted. The cause was misunderstandings between German- and French-speaking SBB employees. This is the finding of the final report by the Safety Investigation Office (Sust), as reported by the “Tages-Anzeiger.”
According to the report, on August 12, 2025, in Neuchâtel-Vauseyon, a freight train was able to brake just in time and finally came to a stop just before an empty regional train. According to the SUST, the hazard “cannot be attributed to technical defects in safety systems or the vehicles.” Instead, the “misrouting of an empty freight train” was the result of misunderstandings among SBB employees. During shunting, the train ended up on the freight train’s track.
“Those involved were unable to safely manage the operational situation in a foreign language. The language requirements defined by SBB therefore do not meet regulatory standards,” states the Sust final report.
The near-accident has consequences. According to the “Tages-Anzeiger,” the Federal Office of Transport intends to increase checks in the future to ensure that train drivers have sufficient language proficiency, “especially at SBB.” While multilingualism is a “major challenge,” the Federal Office writes that “under no circumstances should safety be compromised.”
For SBB, the incident was “fortunately an isolated case.” However, the company is taking the findings of the investigation “very seriously.” Internal guidelines on language proficiency will now be reviewed and adjusted where necessary, and employees will also be made aware of the issue.
