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One third of the population of Switzerland lives within 5 kilometers of the main train line crossing the country
(reddthat.com)
Source (yes sorry it's LinkedIn, if you any another one, I'll update): https://www.linkedin.com/posts/prof-stefan-michel_notsweden-train-activity-7210174690827370496-8iJz?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios
"Main train line" what is that supposed to mean exactly?
What about Lausanne-Yverdon-Neuchatel-Biel-Solothurn-Olten? What about Basel-Olten-Luzern? What about Zürich-Zug-Bellinzona-Lugano? What about Lausanne-Montreux-Martigny-Sion-Visp-Brig? What about Bern-Thun-Spiez-Visp-Brig? What about Zürich-Pfäffikon-Sargans-Lanquart-Chur?
Basically just look at this interactive map if you want a fuller picture, or at this PDF if you want to see a reduced view about the long distance lines only.
And to everyone saying: "Well obviously it follows the valley!" The Mittelland is not some valley, it's a plateau between the Alps and the Jura mountain ranges and it contains about 30% of our area. Besides, you should know about the longest railway tunnel in the world, the Gotthard Base Tunnel and about the Lötschberg Base Tunnel and about the Simplon Tunnel. The Swiss rail system doesn't give up because of some mountains in the way.
Well, it’s probably the longest one, joining west to east, Leman to Konstanz.
It’s also the busiest intercity, mostly because of the Bern-Zurich part but still.
It is named IC1 for a reason, not IC2.
And not stopping in Olten is another big plus 🤷🏻♂️