CH ZH Trains (Free) - Living S-Bahn traffic for greater Zurich
NOTE: Only works with SU6(BETA)!!!
FIRST PUBLIC BETA RELEASE (v1.0.2)
Zurich has one of the densest commuter rail networks in the world - and now
it lives in your simulator. This addon adds the complete S-Bahn network of
the greater Zurich area as moving, scheduled AI traffic:
- 46 lines on about 2,300 km of real route geometry
- 510 stations, 2,350+ train movements every day
- Every single departure follows the REAL 2026 timetable - if the
07:12 leaves Oerlikon in real life, it leaves at 07:12 in your sim - During rush hour, trains run as DOUBLE-LENGTH formations, exactly
like the real morning and evening peaks - Trains stop centered at the platforms, wait their scheduled dwell
time, and continue - with working headlights, red tail lights, lit
windows at night and per-line destination displays - Includes the famous little red mountain train up the Uetliberg,
Zurich’s local mountain, in its distinctive red livery
HOW IT WORKS
Trains within about 10 km of your aircraft are visible; the WHOLE network
is simulated at all times in the background, so wherever you fly, every
train is exactly where the timetable says it should be. Track geometry and
elevations come from official Swiss open government survey data, timetables
from the official Swiss open transit data platform (see
THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.txt).
The train models are intentionally “almost real”: they closely follow the
proportions and character of the trains you see around Zurich, but stay
deliberately brand-free - no logos, no trademarks, slightly generic looks.
That is what keeps a free addon like this legally clean.
PERFORMANCE
Measured at the busiest spot of the whole network (Zurich-Oerlikon, 218
visible cars): about 2.3 fps / under 10 % cost. Anywhere else the impact is
smaller. Away from Switzerland the engine sleeps and costs practically
nothing.
WHY IS THERE AN .EXE?
The simulator cannot spawn scheduled vehicles by itself - every live
traffic addon needs a small companion process. Ours is started once by
EnableAutostart.exe (which registers it in the simulator’s official EXE.xml
autostart mechanism) and then runs automatically with every sim start.
It talks only to the simulator via SimConnect, touches no network, and the
complete source code plus SHA-256 checksums are included in
addon-engine\src for anyone to review.
WHAT’S NEXT
A PRO version covering ALL OF SWITZERLAND is in the works: InterCity and
InterRegio services, regional lines in every corner of the country, freight
traffic, and the famous alpine narrow-gauge lines with their spectacular
viaducts.
This is the first public release - FEEDBACK IS VERY WELCOME! If a train
does something odd in your sim, tell us where and when, and it will be
hunted down. Enjoy the busiest sky-to-rail view in Switzerland!
