Work carried out in the vicinity of railway operations, or which takes place on or borders on land owned by the Rhaetian Railway, requires approval under railway regulations. On this page, you will find information on whether your project is affected, what documents are required, and how to submit your application.
When is approval from RhB required?
Under Section 18m of the Railways Act (EBG), all interventions and works carried out in the vicinity of railway operations or on railway premises are subject to approval by RhB. Examples include:
Construction, demolition, conversion and renovation work on buildings
Laying of pipes, cables and sewers alongside or beneath the Tracks
Installation of mobile phone masts
Installation of technical equipment
Erection of fences
Planting of trees
How the consent request works
During the public consultation process, RhB reviews the submitted project documentation and subsequently issues its approval or statement in accordance with Art. 18m EBG. Any conditions imposed by RhB form an integral part of the planning permission.
The RhB’s approval may be obtained before, during or, at the latest, after the public consultation. However, the competent authority may only grant the building permit once the RhB’s approval has been obtained.
Note: Whether or not a public consultation takes place, construction work may only commence once the RhB’s approval has been obtained.
Prepare the project
Prepare the project in terms of content so that its purpose, scope and key parameters are clearly defined and documented.
Gather the necessary documents
Standard documentation
As part of the public consultation process, the RhB’s assessment is generally based on the same documents that are submitted to the relevant authorities for the building permit:
Building application (including details of the client)
Technical description of the construction process (method of work)
Cadastral or site plan
Dimensioned plans for track works:
Site plan 1:1000 or 1:500
Longitudinal sections 1:100 or 1:50
Cross-section 1:100 or 1:50
Details regarding excavation pit safety
Calculation documents
NISV report for antennas
Documents relating to transmission lines
Documents for conduit applications
The following additional documents must be submitted for conduit applications:
Exact location of the project: line/track, coordinates
Technical description of the construction process/conduit installation
Details of the type of line/pipe (diameter, depth and distance from railway installations)
Cover of at least two metres (between the lower edge of the sleeper and the upper edge of the pipe), crossing as close to right-angled as possible, not in the vicinity of points
Submit an application to RhB
For the review, complete project documentation must be submitted to RhB. The documentation will be forwarded internally to all relevant RhB departments.
All documentation must be submitted in electronic form (PDF): landerwerb@rhb.ch
Internal audit by the relevant RhB specialist departments
Please allow for a processing time of at least four weeks. For larger-scale projects, we recommend contacting the RhB as early as the preliminary project phase. The earlier we can coordinate, the easier it will be to take the RhB’s project-specific requirements into account.
Please note that a fee will be charged for the technical and administrative review of your application.
Approval/ comment from RhB
You can expect to receive approval or a response approximately four weeks after submitting your application.
Start of construction
Work must not commence until the consent form or contract, signed by the client and the utility owners, has been returned to RhB.
Further information
Contact
If you have any questions or require further information, please contact landerwerb@rhb.ch.