Answers to your questions.
This page gives the answers to frequently asked questions. You can scroll down the page or use the list below to jump straight to the information you need.
Energy-saving initiative.
1. Why is SBB launching an energy-saving initiative now?
The decision to launch a group-wide energy-saving initiative at SBB has been prompted by medium-term developments that foresee growth in customer numbers, higher train speeds and increasing comfort on board (e.g. through fitting trains with air conditioning). As a result, energy consumption is expected to rise in the coming years: SBB Energy predicts a 15% increase in energy consumption by 2030. Prices for heating oil in particular are predicted to rise in parallel with this. Moreover, SBB feels it has a responsibility to make a contribution against climate change and to making efficient use of energy resources. It was against this backdrop that the Management Board decided in December 2007 to implement a group-wide energy-saving initiative.
2. In concrete terms, what will the SBB energy-saving initiative achieve?
As a state-owned company, SBB contributes actively to saving energy and so to protecting the environment. Its efforts towards saving energy strengthen SBB’s environmentally friendly image. The potential saving of 10% predicted annual consumption, or around 230 GWh per year from 2015, is considerable. Of course, SBB wants to make the best possible use of these savings.
3. How has SBB reached the figure of 10%?
SBB has carried out systematic research into its energy-saving potential. SBB's experts have been working with external specialists on a study supported by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) into possible measures to reduce energy consumption in train operations. In parallel with this, the 130 largest buildings belonging to SBB were analysed for their energy-saving potential. Specialists from the Agency for Energy and the Economy (EnAW) discussed possible measures, and the ways in which these could be implemented, with the property managers on site.
The targets set are ambitious, but achievable if the programme is implemented rigorously.
» top of page
Railway noise.
1. When will I have the benefit of a noise barrier in front of my house?
Building noise barriers is expensive. SBB cannot, therefore, build all the barriers at the same time. This is why SBB has divided its network into 50 renovation sectors – with a total of 550 projects to be completed over the next 15 years. SBB completes between 30 and 45 projects each year. Details of the phasing of these projects can be found on pages 12 and 13 of the Noise? No thanks! brochure (in German).
2. I would like to fit sound insulating windows in my house. What level of contribution can I expect from SBB?
Detailed responses may be found on pages 6 to 8 of the FAQs (in German).
3. I have already fitted sound insulating windows in my house. Will my costs be refunded?
A detailed reply to this question may be found in the Swiss Federal Office of Transport's information bulletin under »Reimbursement of the cost of sound insulating windows already fitted» (in German).
4. I already have a noise barrier in front of my house. Will my costs be refunded?
A detailed reply to this question may be found in the Swiss Federal Office of Transport's information bulletin under »Reimbursement of the cost of noise barriers already erected« (in German).
5. What noise barrier measures has SBB already implemented, and what further measures are planned?
In recent years, SBB has modernised its fleet of passenger trains and has upgraded the brakes on the older carriages. This means that 98 percent of our passenger trains are already low-noise. Carriages still fitted with old, noisy brakes will be gradually phased out by SBB over the next few years. By 2014, SBB will also convert all its goods wagons to low-noise systems. In addition, SBB will be erecting noise barriers to screen sections of track particularly suffering from noise. Where necessary, SBB will also have sound insulating windows fitted. You can find out on pages 12 and 13 of the Noise? No thanks! brochure (in German) which sections of the network are to have noise barriers erected or on the website of Bundesamt für Verkehr «Projektstand Lärmsanierung der Eisenbahnen» .
» top of page
Wooden sleepers.
1. Is SBB still selling wooden sleepers?
No, SBB stopped selling wooden sleepers in July 2001 as they contain certain toxic substances. All wooden sleepers are incinerated in a thermal power station in an environmentally friendly manner. (see question 4)
2. What may old wooden railway sleepers be used for?
According to the Swiss Regulation on the Reduction of Chemical Hazards, old wooden railway sleepers may only be re-used in railway tracks.
3. How must old railway sleepers be disposed of?
Old wooden railway sleepers must be disposed of in a refuse incineration facility. Burning old wooden railway sleepers or parts of sleepers in the open air or in private wood-fired facilities is prohibited as highly toxic gases are generated because the combustion temperature is too low.
You may also return used wooden railway sleepers to SBB, who will dispose of the sleepers for you in an environmentally acceptable manner. Please get in touch with the SBB Material Sales, email. You will then receive a personal quotation for disposal according to the quantity, condition and origin/source of the wooden sleepers.
Further recycling points may be found in the local recycling directory or on the Internet at www.abfall.ch (go to Eisenbahnschwellen » Problematische Holzabfälle). Please find out about the acceptance conditions applying in your area.
4. How toxic are old wooden railway sleepers?
Some of the constituents of the creosote with which the railway sleepers have been impregnated are toxic. These are known as PAHs – polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. There are various types of PAH, some of which are considered carcinogenic. However, the carcinogenic PAHs are of low volatility, and thus do not generally escape into the atmosphere. Consequently, there is only a risk to health after many years of contact with the skin. Wooden sleepers impregnated with creosote are not suitable for use in children's playgrounds, in the garden or in any indoor environment.
As it is not possible to prevent the absorption of PAH through the skin, contact with creosote visibly oozing from impregnated timbers should be avoided. It is therefore advisable to cover objects impregnated with creosote (for instance benches or tables, edges of sandpits, toys, etc.). Should you nevertheless come into contact with impregnated objects, you should wash the parts of the skin affected thoroughly.
It is currently uncertain whether plants can absorb PAH through the soil. As a precautionary measure, you should therefore observe a safety distance of half a metre from any old sleepers when planting fruit and vegetables. In addition, you should wash thoroughly any fruit and vegetables that have grown near the sleepers before eating them.
5. Will SBB continue to use wooden sleepers in the future?
Yes, SBB will continue to use wooden sleepers in the future, as they have properties and benefits that no other material has.
- Wood is an easily worked building material. This is particularly important in the case of points timbers, which have to be modified on site.
- As a material, wood has excellent elastic properties. It is therefore particularly good at damping vibrations.
- Wooden sleepers can also be used if the ground conditions are not favourable, and the ground can be cleared with less effort.
- Wooden sleepers are very resilient, which minimises the damage in the event of a derailment. For these reasons, they are often used in marshalling yards.
- As wooden sleepers suffer relatively little damage on impacts, they are often used in
- mountainous regions where there is an increased risk of rock falls.
- Wooden sleepers are insensitive to dynamic impact loads, such as those occurring in tight-radius curves.
» top of page
Electromagnetic fields.
Questions regarding cardiac pacemakers.
1. Should I expect interference with my pacemaker in the train?
No, normally no interference will occur. Theoretically, however, certain models of pacemaker that react with particular sensitivity to magnetic fields could suffer interference. SBB will follow up thoroughly any information from customers who express a suspicion in this regard. However, magnetic fields associated with the railway have never so far been identified as a cause of interference. In any event, most cardiac pacemakers switch to an automatic operating mode in the event of a fault triggered, for instance, by briefly elevated magnetic fields. Further information and recommendations concerning cardiac pacemakers may be obtained from the Swiss Heart Foundation.
2. Can mobile phones interfere with the operation of my cardiac pacemaker?
Normally not, as most cardiac pacemakers do not react to mobile phones. You may ask your doctor or the manufacturer of your cardiac pacemaker whether your pacemaker can suffer from interference from mobile phones. If you do not know that your cardiac pacemaker is actually immune to interference, you should maintain a precautionary safety distance of at least 25 centimetres between the cardiac pacemaker and a mobile phone. If you maintain this safety distance, any possible fault in your cardiac pacemaker is, as a rule, prevented.
Further information and recommendations concerning cardiac pacemakers may be obtained from the Swiss Heart Foundation.
3. Should I expect interference in my cardiac pacemaker in the vicinity of a mobile phone mast?
No, the field strengths of mobile phone transmitters are too weak to interfere with the operation of your cardiac pacemaker. Numerous measurements in buildings with mobile phone transmitters have demonstrated this. As a user of a cardiac pacemaker, however, you should avoid the safety zone marked around mobile phone masts. Thus you should take care when carrying out maintenance work on roofs, for instance.
Further information and recommendations concerning cardiac pacemakers may be obtained from the Swiss Heart Foundation.
Questions relating to mobile phone repeaters in the train.
4. Are the mobile phone repeaters that amplify the mobile phone signals in the train hazardous to health?
No, the radio waves that the repeaters transmit are almost one hundred times weaker than the radio waves transmitted by a normal mobile phone at maximum output. The repeater radio waves over the entire SBB network are at least ten times less than the permissible limit values. There is thus no risk to health.
Mobile phone repeaters are amplifiers which receive the radio signals from outside the railway carriage and transmit them again inside the carriage at about the same field strength. This improves call quality in the train.
Questions concerning mobile phone antennas (railway and public provider).
5. Is the radiation from mobile phone antennas dangerous?
No, the public is protected against excessive radiation by hazard limitation values. The radiation emitted by transmitting antennas is far below these limit values. Intensive research all around the world is yet to demonstrate any health hazard presented by radiation below these limit values.
Switzerland imposes limits on the equipment in addition to these hazard limit values. These are ten times lower than the hazard limit values. This means that there is very good protection against hazardous radiation, according to current research.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has been running an international project since 1996 studying whether and from what strength electromagnetic fields are a danger to health. These long-term studies show that the current hazard limit values offer adequate protection against radiation.
Questions regarding WLANs.
6. Is there a significant health risk for people exposed to the radiation from WLANs?
As far as is currently known, if the limit values are observed there is no additional health risk. Modern WLAN routers are well within current limit values.
7. Is the radiation from WLANs greater than that from mobile phones?
No, the intensity of the radiation in a WLAN is substantially less than that for mobile phones, since WLANs transmit at a significantly lower output (maximum output approximately 20 times lower).
Questions regarding flickering screens.
8. Do electromagnetic fields which cause the screen to flicker represent a health hazard?
No. flickering screens are no indication of a health risk. CRT screens are very susceptible to interference, which means that flickering can start at very low field strengths. The field strengths emitted by power lines are, however, far below the permissible hazard limit values and so the possibility of a health hazard can be safely excluded. A flickering screen can, however, cause headaches by itself.
Questions concerning overhead power lines.
9. Is there an increased risk to the health of people who work in the immediate vicinity of power lines or are frequent train passengers?
As far as is currently known, there is no increased health risk for people who work in the vicinity of railway power lines. There are clear technical rules for high-voltage systems such as contact or other high-voltage power lines near locations where people are permanently present. SBB observes these rules for all its installations.
For train passengers too, health risks can be excluded since the values are far below the hazard limit values. In fact, magnetic fields also occur in cars, where they vary greatly depending on the model but are of similar strength to those occurring in trains.
» top of page
Noxious odours.
1. Why does it sometimes smell when trains brake?
As part of the noise reduction measures for passenger carriages and freight wagons, SBB has replaced the cast iron brake blocks with plastic brake blocks. These generate half as much noise, but on rapid application the plastic composites used can begin to carbonise, just like in a car driving off with the handbrake applied. Although the gases given off by carbonisation have a strong smell, they are not injurious to health.
Our engine drivers are instructed to brake electrically whenever possible to avoid generating odours. However, when they brake sharply, which cannot always be avoided, even if they have tried to anticipate the conditions ahead and in the last phase before coming to a halt, they still have to use their air brakes.
» top of page
Waste management.
1. Does SBB recycle its waste?
SBB collects the abandoned newspapers lying around in trains and sends them for recycling. SBB or shopkeepers have set up PET bottle bins in many stations. Litter left behind by passengers is sorted wherever possible. For example, SBB has its own refuse sorting centre at Zurich HB. However, as sorting refuse is time-consuming and costly, SBB is not able to sort all the refuse it collects, particularly at smaller stations. Some of the recoverable material thus ends up in refuse incinerators.
In 2008, SBB recycled 29 tons of aluminium cans, around 167 tons of PET, 122 tons of glass and 5740 tons of paper. About 29,000 tons of mixed refuse was sent for incineration.
2. What happens to expired Half-Fare cards?
SBB sends old Half-Fare cards to Printoplast AG in Affoltern am Albis. They shred the cards and recycle them into insulating tape for the electrical industry.
3. Do freesheet newspapers pay for the disposal of their abandoned newspapers?
Any freesheet that has set up dispensers will pay SBB a fee for the use of the station area. This also includes a sum for the disposal of the newspapers.
However, the amount of refuse generated by other abandoned newspapers and freesheets is not inconsiderable and we have no agreements with these newspapers. SBB is thus not reimbursed for the disposal of these newspapers.
4. Can I dispose of PET bottles in SBB stations?
SBB has provided a total of 200 PET bottle bins at all RailCity stations and at the stations of larger towns. In addition, many station-based shops, kiosks and catering outlets have their own PET bins which train passengers may also use. Only at the smaller stops has SBB not been able, for economic reasons, to provide PET recycling points.
» top of page
| 
