The Role of Rail in the Mobility of the Future: Interview with Daniel Eckenstein on SBB's Considerations
SBB is pursuing a vision for a target image of mobility, aiming to make Switzerland's rail system more sustainable, efficient, and innovative to meet the challenges of the future. In this context, the Railway Talent Hub has interviewed several individuals to shed light on their perspectives and roles in this long-term project.
About SBB's Target Image of Mobility
Rail, as a climate-friendly and space-efficient mode of transport, will continue to play a central role in overall mobility in the future. At the same time, growing demand is increasingly pushing the capacity of rail hubs and the system’s complexity to their limits.
For this reason, SBB is reflecting on the mobility of the future. They are developing a long-term target image for a railway that operates more flexibly, frequently, and quickly. These considerations contribute to the debate within the industry and society about the role of rail in future mobility. At this stage, all work is still in progress, and no decisions have yet been made on how to proceed.
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Interview with Daniel Eckenstein
What was your role in developing the Target Image 2050+?
My task is to prove that the operation and maintenance of this vision are possible and to identify what it will require.
Significantly more trains will run on our rail network, which will, for example, require energy supply. At the same time, even 50 years from now, there will still be wear and tear and a need for renewal and maintenance work on parts of the system.
In this role, I must reconcile the many assumptions about technological developments and operations with physical realities and the limits of digitization. For example, passenger boarding and alighting will not suddenly be "digitized away," and the tracks will still need to be renewed at regular intervals.
Why is the rail sector considered central to future mobility?
The strengths of rail—its ability to transport many people simultaneously with minimal space requirements—will continue to be needed in the future. These strengths should be supplemented by intelligent solutions for rural last-mile distribution, where other modes of transport can play to their strengths.
What were the biggest challenges or insights in this process?
The interdisciplinary team and our stakeholders are characterized by a great plurality of opinions. Finding a language to bring these perspectives into a constructive discourse has been a challenge. For instance, pure technological optimism—“innovation solves everything”—clashes with legitimate warnings to preserve existing strengths—“never change a running system.” This occurs alongside various financial perspectives, ranging from investments and specific budget sources to considerations of regulations and standards.
Profile of the Interviewee: Daniel Eckenstein
I developed an early enthusiasm for mobility, which led me to study civil engineering at ETH Zurich because I wanted to help shape our built environment. Through my master’s thesis, I joined SBB as a trainee, right after the FABI vote. This shaped me in the sense that I embraced the momentum of prioritizing the preservation of existing infrastructure over expansion. At the same time, I actively sought a holistic view of the overall mobility system: where does each mode of transport have its legitimacy? I pursued this question during my studies and throughout all my projects and assignments. That is how I almost inevitably and joyfully arrived at this project.
I have extensive knowledge of the strengths and limitations of rail systems: which technological developments can solve our problems, and where do we need to reinvent physics altogether? In a diverse team, with various perspectives on technology, history, politics, society, and a focus on customers and taxpayers, I have the opportunity to help shape our future.
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“We are allowed to reflect and work together on a possible future for our mobility landscape. The best solutions emerge in a team with diverse perspectives and experiences.”
– Daniel Eckenstein
SBB’s considerations for the target image of mobility were presented at the 2024 annual media conference as part of an assessment of the current situation: