With the Easter holidays fast approaching, Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) has confirmed that it will dramatically expand the number of services during the weekend. It comes as the government warns drivers to expect major delays on the roads in the lead-up to, during and after the holiday. Here's what holidaymakers need to know:

SBB boosts train services during Easter weekend

Faced with a dramatic increase in demand, SBB is set to run 20 extra long-distance trains between Maundy Thursday (April 17) and Easter Monday (April 21), along with making existing trains longer. In all, around 64.000 extra seats will be offered during Easter.

The extra trains will run between Swiss cities and Canton Ticino, and between Lugano and Milan via Varese, Gallarate and Rho Fiera. International services that pass through Switzerland, such as EuroCity trains, will also be made longer to cater to more passengers.

Despite the extra capacity, the public transport provider still warned travellers to expect packed trains and some disruption during the Easter weekend. It’s also important to bear in mind that trains between Switzerland, Germany, the Netherlands and Czechia will be disrupted during the weekend, due to “short notice” repair work between Basel and Karlsruhe.

Traffic information for Easter 2025 in Switzerland

For drivers in Switzerland, the Federal Roads Office (Astra) is expecting long traffic jams and delays over the Easter holidays in 2025. The densest jams are expected on Swiss motorways, especially routes through the mountains like the Gotthard and San Bernadino. "High traffic volumes are also expected on the feeder routes to popular tourist destinations and on the highways in the Swiss Plateau," Astra wrote.

In all, here are the routes expected to see the biggest jams:

• A1: Geneva, Lausanne, Zurich, Härkingen-Wangen am Albis, Kirchberg-Schönbühl
• A2: Basel, Lucerne, Belchen Tunnel-Härkingen, Gotthard Road Tunnel, Chiasso-Brogeda
• A3: Basel, Walenstadt-Reichenburg
• A4: Flüelen
• A8: Interlaken-Spiez, Sarnen-Lopper junction
• A9: Lausanne, Vevey-Bex North, Vallorbe
• A12: Châtel-St-Denis-Vevey
• A13: Sarganserland-Rothenbrunnen, Andeer-Mesocco
• A24: Gaggiolo

Non-highway routes up to major ski resorts and near the Italian lakes are also expected to be very busy. Traffic jams will be heaviest heading southbound at the beginning of the holiday, while the worst northbound traffic is expected from Easter Sunday onwards.

Don't try to avoid traffic on smaller roads, Astra advises

While sitting in traffic on the motorway is frustrating, the government warned against trying your luck on smaller regional roads. “This burdens the people living in the villages along the highways and ultimately leads to traffic gridlock in the regions," Astra wrote, adding that it also increases the frequency of road accidents.

Despite the warnings, many drivers choose to ignore the advice, leading many smaller communities to come up with weird and wonderful ways to try and stop motorists driving through. 

In May 2023, the town of Donat / Ems deliberately held up traffic as they entered town, to fool Google Maps into thinking the route was slower than the gridlocked motorway. In 2024, Canton Graubünden confirmed that it had expanded the practice to the whole of the M13 - the road which follows alongside the A13 motorway.

Thumb image credit: Stefano Ember / Shutterstock.com