SBB profit jumps as more passengers return to Swiss trains

SBB lifted its first-half profit to CHF 126 million, giving Switzerland’s national railway a stronger financial position as passengers return in greater numbers. The result, reported on August 26, 2026, compares with a profit of CHF 48 million in the first half of 2025.

Passenger traffic provided the clearest boost. SBB carried an average of 1.45 million people per day, a 4% rise compared with the same period last year. The increase points to sustained demand for rail travel across Switzerland, where trains connect major cities, regional centres and Alpine communities.

SBB also credited its property business and a recovery in freight traffic for the improved result. The railway operator has been under pressure to strengthen its finances while continuing to maintain an extensive network and invest in trains and services.

The stronger figures come with a warning. SBB’s trains were slightly less punctual than they were a year earlier. 94.1% of trains arrived on time, compared with 94.5% in the first half of 2025. The decline is modest, but punctuality remains a closely watched measure for commuters and for a railway system operating at high capacity.

The daily passenger count reached 1.45 million, reinforcing rail’s central role in Swiss mobility and providing SBB with a larger base of fare-paying customers. The 4% annual increase represents a significant recovery in use of the network, although the source does not break the result down by canton, route or ticket category.

Switzerland’s rail system carries commuters into economic centres such as Zurich, Geneva, Basel and Bern, while also serving tourism and local travel in the cantons. Higher passenger numbers can support revenue across the network, from standard rail fares to station retail and related services. SBB identified the passenger business, its property operations and freight recovery as the main drivers of the first-half improvement.

The figures also raise operational demands. More travellers mean fuller trains, busier platforms and greater pressure on infrastructure, rolling stock and timetables. SBB must keep services reliable while renewing trains and expanding capacity, a costly task in a country that depends heavily on public transport.

The punctuality figure shows the pressure clearly. On-time performance fell by 0.4 percentage points, from 94.5% to 94.1%. SBB did not provide a cause for the decline in the supplied results, so the figures show the outcome rather than assign responsibility.

SBB Cargo returned to a CHF 2 million profit, marking its first break-even result in many years and improving its position by CHF 49 million from the previous year. The recovery gives the freight business a more stable foundation as SBB reshapes its operations.

Freight is strategically important to Switzerland, where rail moves goods through a dense and geographically constrained transport corridor. A healthier cargo operation can support the broader railway group and strengthen the role of rail in moving goods across the country. The reported result, however, remains small compared with SBB’s total financial needs.

SBB will continue with a structural change that places freight directly inside the parent organisation. From 2027, Federal Railways Cargo will be reintegrated into the group and become a division of Swiss Federal Railways AG. The supplied report does not detail the full restructuring plan, its expected workforce effects or the financial targets attached to it.

The change comes as SBB seeks to build dependable profits across its passenger, property and freight activities. Cargo’s return to the black is a positive signal, but the railway still needs sustained performance from each area to finance long-term investment. One profitable half-year does not remove that requirement.

SBB says it needs around CHF 500 million in annual profit over the medium term, far above the CHF 126 million recorded in the first half of 2026. The target highlights the scale of the railway’s investment challenge even after a strong improvement in the latest results.

The company plans to renew its rolling stock and expand services while avoiding a sharp rise in debt. Those objectives place its passenger growth and property income in a broader financial context. Higher ridership helps, but it must be sustained. Freight must also maintain its recovery, and the property business must continue contributing to the group’s balance sheet.

For passengers, the financial plan will matter through the condition of trains, available capacity and the reliability of daily services. The first-half punctuality result, 94.1%, shows that SBB is operating close to the performance levels expected by the travelling public, while also facing the practical strains of a busy network.

The next test will be whether the company can turn the current rebound into recurring earnings. SBB’s 2026 figures provide momentum, but the medium-term requirement of CHF 500 million a year means the railway must keep attracting passengers, stabilise freight and control investment costs at the same time.