Wikipedia

Commuter rail

(Redirected fromCommuter train)
"Suburban train" redirects here. For the Tiësto song of the same name, seeSuburban Train/Urban Train.

Commuter railorsuburban railis apassenger railservice that primarily operates within ametropolitan area,connectingcommutersto acentral cityfrom adjacentsuburbsorcommuter towns.[1][2][3]Commuter rail systems can use locomotive-hauled trains or multiple units, using electric or diesel propulsion.[2]Distance charges or zone pricing may be used.

Clockwise from top left:

The term can refer to systems with a wide variety of different features and service frequencies, but is often used in contrast torapid transitorlight rail.

Some services share similarities with both commuter rail and high-frequencyrapid transit;examples include GermanS-Bahnin some cities, theRéseau Express Régional(RER) in Paris, theS Linesin Milan, many Japanese commuter systems, theEast Rail linein Hong Kong, and some Australasian suburban networks, such asSydney Trains.Many commuter rail systems share tracks with other passenger services andfreight.

In North America, commuter rail sometimes refers only to systems that primarily operate duringrush hourand offer little to no service for the rest of the day, withregional railbeing used to refer to systems that offer all-day service.[4][5][6]

Characteristics

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Mumbai Suburban Railwaycarries more than 7.24 million commuters on a daily basis
Very short commuter train inpush mode.
GO Transitserves the GreaterGolden Horseshoeregion surrounding Toronto. Its train services are transitioning from a peak direction commuter railway to aRegional Express Network.

Most commuter (or suburban) trains are built to main line rail standards,[7]differing fromlight railorrapid transit(metro rail) systems by:

  • being larger
  • providing more seating and less standing room, owing to the longer distances involved
  • having (in most cases) a lower frequency of service
  • having scheduled services (i.e. trains run at specific times rather than at specific intervals)
  • serving lower-density suburban areas, typically connectingsuburbsto the city center
  • sharing track orright-of-waywith intercity and/orfreighttrains
  • not fully grade separated (containing at-grade crossings with crossing gates)
  • being able to skip certain stations as an express service due to normally being driver controlled

Train schedule

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Compared torapid transit(or metro rail), commuter/suburban rail often has lowerfrequency,following a schedule rather than fixed intervals, and fewer stations spaced further apart. They primarily serve lower density suburban areas (non inner-city), generally only having one or two stops in a city's central business district, and often shareright-of-waywith intercity orfreighttrains.[8]Some services operate only during peak hours and others use fewer departures during off peak hours and weekends. Average speeds are high, often 50 km/h (30 mph) or higher. These higher speeds better serve the longer distances involved. Some services include express services which skip some stations in order to run faster and separate longer distance riders from short-distance ones.[9]

The general range of commuter trains' travel distance varies between 15 and 200 km (10 and 125 miles), but longer distances can be covered when the trains run between two or several cities (e.g. S-Bahn in theRuhrarea of Germany). Distances between stations may vary, but are usually much longer than those of urban rail systems. In city centres the train either has a terminal station or passes through the city centre with notably fewer station stops than those of urban rail systems. Toilets are often available on-board trains and in stations.

Track

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Their ability to coexist with freight or intercity services in the sameright-of-waycan drastically reduce system construction costs. However, frequently they are built with dedicated tracks within that right-of-way to prevent delays, especially where service densities have converged in the inner parts of the network.

Most such trains run on thelocal standard gaugetrack. Some systems may run on a narrower or broader gauge. Examples ofnarrow-gaugesystems are found in Japan,Indonesia,Malaysia,Thailand,Taiwan, Switzerland, in theBrisbane(Queensland Rail'sCity network) andPerth(Transperth) systems in Australia, in some systems in Sweden, and on theGenoa-Casella linein Italy. Some countries and regions, includingFinland,India, Pakistan,Russia,Brazil and Sri Lanka, as well asSan Francisco(BART) in the US andMelbourneandAdelaidein Australia, usebroad gaugetrack.

Distinction between other modes of rail

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Metro

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Metro rail andrapid transitusually cover smaller inner-urban areas within 12 to 20 km (7 to 12 mi) of city centers, with shorter stop spacing, use rolling stocks with larger standing spaces, lower top speed and higher acceleration, designed for short-distance travel. They also run more frequently, to a headway rather than a published timetable and use dedicated tracks (underground or elevated), whereas commuter rail often shares tracks, technology and the legal framework within mainline railway systems, and uses rolling stocks with more seating and higher speed for comfort on longer city-suburban journeys.[citation needed]

However, the classification as a metro or rapid rail can be difficult as both may typically cover a metropolitan area exclusively, run on separate tracks in the centre, and often feature purpose-built rolling stock. The fact that the terminology is not standardised across countries (even across English-speaking countries) further complicates matters. This distinction is most easily made when there are two (or more) systems such as New York'ssubwayand theLIRRandMetro-North Railroad,Paris'MétroandRERalong withTransilien,Washington D.C.'sMetroalong with itsMARCandVRE,London's tube lines of theUndergroundand theOverground,Elizabeth line,Thameslinkalong with other commuter railoperators,Madrid'sMetroandCercanías,Barcelona'sMetroandRodalies,and Tokyo'ssubwayand theJR linesalong with various privately owned and operated commuter rail systems.

Regional rail

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Regional railusually providesrail servicesbetween towns and cities, rather than purely linking major population hubs in the wayinter-city raildoes. Regional rail operates outside major cities. Unlike Inter-city, it stops at most or all stations between cities. It provides a service between smaller communities along the line that are often byproducts ofribbon developments,and also connects with long-distance services at interchange stations located at junctions, terminals, or larger towns along the line. Alternative names are "local train" or "stopping train". Examples include the formerBR'sRegional Railways,France'sTER(Transport express régional),[10]Germany'sRegionalexpressandRegionalbahn,and South Korea'sTonggeunandMugunghwa-hoservices.[11]

Inter-city rail

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See also:Inter-city rail
ASydney Trains B setwith an upper and lower deck

In some European countries, the distinction between commuter trains and long-distance/intercity trains is subtle, due to the relatively short distances involved. For example, so-called "intercity"trains in Belgium and the Netherlands carry many commuters, while their equipment, range, and speeds are similar to those of commuter trains in some larger countries.

The United Kingdom has a privatised rail system, with different routes and services covered by different private operators. The distinction between commuter and intercity rail is not as clear as it was before privatisation (when InterCity existed as a brand of its own), but usually it is still possible to tell them apart. Some operators, for exampleThameslink,focus solely on commuter services. Others, such asAvanti West CoastandLNER,run solely intercity services. Others still, such asGWRandEMR,run a mixture of commuter, regional and intercity services. Some of these operators use different branding for different types of service (for example EMR brands its trains as either "InterCity", "Connect" for London commuter services, and "Regional" ) but even for those operators that do not, the type of train, amenities offered, and stopping pattern, usually tell the services apart.

Russian commuter trains,on the other hand, frequently cover areas larger than Belgium itself, although these are still short distances by Russian standards. They have a different ticketing system from long-distance trains, and in major cities they often operate from a separate section of the train station.

Some consider "inter-city" service to be that which operates as an express service between two main city stations, bypassing intermediate stations. However, this term is used in Australia (Sydney for example) to describe the regional trains operating beyond the boundaries of the suburban services, even though some of these "inter-city" services stop all stations similar to German regional services. In this regard, the German service delineations and naming conventions are clearer and better used for academic purposes.

High-speed rail

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A Tokyo-boundE4 Series Shinkansentrain. As of October 2021 these have since been retired.

Sometimeshigh-speed railcan serve daily use of commuters. The JapaneseShinkansenhigh speed rail system is heavily used by commuters in theGreater Tokyo Area,who commute between 100 and 200 km (62 and 124 mi) byShinkansen.[12]To meet the demand of commuters,JRsells commuter discount passes. Before 2021, they operated 16-carbilevelE4 Series Shinkansentrains at rush hour, providing a capacity of 1,600 seats.[13]Several lines inChina,such as theBeijing–Tianjin Intercity Railwayand theShanghai–Nanjing High-Speed Railway,serve a similar role with many more under construction or planned.[14]

InSouth Korea,some sections of the high-speed rail network are also heavily used by commuters, such as the section betweenGwangmyeong StationandSeoul Stationon theKTXnetwork (Gyeongbu HSR Line), or the section betweenDongtan StationandSuseo stationon theSRTLine.

The high-speed services linkingZurich,BernandBaselinSwitzerland(200 km/h (120 mph)) have brought the Central Business Districts (CBDs) of these three cities within 1 hour of each other. This has resulted in unexpectedly high demand for new commuter trips between the three cities and a corresponding increase in suburban rail passengers accessing the high-speed services at the main city-centre stations (Hauptbahnhof). TheRegional-Expresscommuter service betweenMunichandNurembergin Germany runs at 200 km/h (120 mph) on the 300 km/h (186 mph)Nuremberg–Ingolstadt high-speed railway.

The regional trainsStockholm–Uppsala,Stockholm–Västerås,Stockholm–EskilstunaandGothenburg–TrollhättaninSwedenreach 200 km/h (120 mph) and have many daily commuters.

InGreat Britain,theHS1domestic services between London and Ashford runs at a top speed of 225 km/h, and in peak hours the trains can be full with commuters standing.

TheAthens Suburban Railwayin Greece consists of five lines, 4 of which are electrified. TheKiato–Piraeusline and theAigio–Airportlines reach speeds of up to 180 km/h (112 mph). TheAthens–Chalcisline is also expected to attain speeds of up to 200 km/h (124 mph) upon upgrading of the SKA–Oinoi railway sector. These lines also have many daily commuters, with the number expected to rise even higher upon full completion of theAcharnes Railway Center.

Eskişehir-AnkaraandKonya-Ankarahigh speed train routes serve as high speed commuter trains inTurkey.

Train types

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Commuter/suburban trains are usually optimized for maximum passenger volume, in most cases without sacrificing too much comfort andluggagespace, though they seldom have all the amenities of long-distance trains. Cars may be single- ordouble-level,and aim to provide seating for all. Compared to intercity trains, they have less space, fewer amenities and limited baggage areas.

Multiple unit type

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An electric multiple unit at Treviglio, onMilan suburban lineS5

Commuter rail trains are usually composed ofmultiple units,which are self-propelled, bidirectional, articulated passenger rail cars with driving motors on each (or every other)bogie.Depending on local circumstances and tradition they may be powered either bydiesel engineslocated below the passenger compartment (diesel multiple units) or by electricity picked up fromthird railsoroverhead lines(electric multiple units). Multiple units are almost invariably equipped with control cabs at both ends, which is why such units are so frequently used to provide commuter services, due to the associated short turn-around time.

Locomotive hauled services

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AnAltamont Corridor Expresstrain operating along theSan Francisco Bay;aMPI F40PH-2Clocomotive hauls a consist ofBombardier BiLevel Coaches.

Locomotive hauled services are used in some countries or locations. This is often a case of asset sweating, by using a single large combined fleet for intercity and regional services. Loco hauled services are usually run inpush-pullformation, that is, the train can run with the locomotive at the "front" or "rear" of the train (pushing or pulling). Trains are often equipped with a control cab at the other end of the train from the locomotive, allowing the train operator to operate the train from either end. The motive power for locomotive-hauled commuter trains may be either electric ordiesel–electric,although some countries, such as Germany and some of the former Soviet-bloc countries, also use diesel–hydraulic locomotives.

Seat plans

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In the US and some other countries, a three-and-two seat plan is used. Middle seats on these trains are often less popular because passengers feel crowded and uncomfortable.[15][16]

In Japan, South Korea and Indonesia, longitudinal (sideways window-lining) seating is widely used in many commuter rail trains to increase capacity in rush hours. Carriages are usually not organized to increaseseating capacity(although in some trains at least one carriage would feature more doors to facilitate easier boarding and alighting and bench seats so that they can be folded up during rush hour to provide more standing room) even in the case of commuting longer than 50 km and commuters in theGreater Tokyo Area,Seoul metropolitan area,andJabodetabek areahave to stand in the train for more than an hour.

Commuter rail systems around the world

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See also:List of suburban and commuter rail systems

Africa

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See also:Template:Suburban railways in Africa
AMetrorailtrain pulling out ofKalk Baystation inCape Town

Currently there are not many examples of commuter rail inAfrica.Metrorailoperates in the major cities ofSouth Africa,and there are some commuter rail services inAlgeria,Botswana,Kenya,Morocco,EgyptandTunisia. In Algeria,SNTFoperates commuter rail lines between the capitalAlgiersand its southern and eastern suburbs. They also serve to connectAlgiers' mainuniversitiesto each other. TheDar es Salaam commuter railoffers intracity services inDar es Salaam,Tanzania. In Botswana, the (Botswana Railways) "BR Express" has a commuter train betweenLobatseandGaborone.

Asia

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East Asia

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AnE235 seriestrain operating a through service on theJR EastYamanote Line,an example of high-density commuter rail in Japan.

In Japan, commuter rail systems have extensive network and frequent service and are heavily used. In many cases, Japanese commuter rail is operationally more like a typical metro system (frequent trains, an emphasis onstanding passengers,short station spacings) than it is like commuter rail in other countries. Japanese commuter rail commonly interline with city center subway lines, with commuter rail trains continuing into the subway network, and then out onto different commuter rail systems on the other side of the city. Many Japanese commuter systems operate various stopping patterns to reduce the travel time to distant locations, often using stationpassing loopsinstead of dedicated express tracks. It is notable that the larger Japanese commuter rail systems are owned and operated by for-profitprivate railwaycompanies, without public subsidy.

East Japan Railway Companyoperates a large suburban train network inTokyowith various lines connecting the suburban areas to the city center. While theYamanote Line,Keihin Tohoku Line,Chūō–Sōbu Lineservices arguably are more akin torapid transitwith frequent stops, simple stopping patterns (relative to other JR East lines) no branching services and largely serving the inner suburbs; other services along theChūō Rapid Line,Sōbu Rapid Line/Yokosuka Line,Ueno–Tokyo Line,Shōnan–Shinjuku Lineetc. are mid-distance services from suburban lines in the outer reaches of Greater Tokyo through operating into these lines to form a high frequency corridor though central Tokyo.

Other commuter rail routes in Japan include:

Commuter rail systems have been inaugurated in several cities in China such asBeijing,Shanghai,Zhengzhou,Wuhan,Changshaand thePearl River Delta.With plans for large systems in northeasternZhejiang,Jingjinji,andYangtze River Deltaareas. The level of service varies considerably from line to line ranginghighto near high speeds. More developed and established lines such as theGuangshen Railwayhave more frequent metro-like service.

The twoMTRlines which are owned and formerly operated by theKowloon-Canton Railway Corporation(East Rail lineandTuen Ma linewhich is integrated from the formerWest Rail lineandMa On Shan linein 2021), then the"KCR"), and MTR's ownTung Chung lineconnect the new towns inNew Territoriesand the city centreKowloontogether with frequent intervals, and some New Territories-bound trains terminate at intermediate stations, providing more frequent services in Kowloon and the towns closer to Kowloon. They use rolling stocks with a faster maximum speed and have longer stop spacing compared to other lines which only run in the inner urban area, but in order to maximise capacity and throughput, these rolling stocks have longitudinal seatings, 5 pairs of doors in each carriage with large standing spaces like the urban lines, and run as frequent as well. Most of the sections of these four lines are overground and some sections of the East Rail Line share tracks with intercity trains tomainland China.The three KCR lines are integrated into the MTR network since 2008 and most passengers do not need to exit and re-enter the system through separate fare gates and purchase separate tickets to transfer between such lines and the rest of the network (the exceptions are between the Tuen Ma line'sEast Tsim Sha Tsui stationand the Tsuen Wan line'sTsim Sha Tsui station.

In Taiwan, theWestern linein theTaipei-TaoyuanMetropolitan Area,TaichungMetropolitan Area andTainan-KaohsiungMetropolitan Area as well as theNeiwan-Liujia linein theHsinchuArea are considered commuter rail.

In South Korea, theSeoul Metropolitan Subwayincludes a total of 22 lines, and some of its lines are suburban lines. This is especially the case for lines operated byKorail,such as theGyeongui-Jungang Line,theGyeongchun Line,theSuin-Bundang Line,or theGyeonggang Line.Even some lines not operated by Korail, such as theAREXLine, theSeohae Lineor theShinbundang Linemostly function as commuter rail. Lastly, even for the "numbered lines" (1–9) of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway which mostly travel in the dense parts of Seoul, some track sections extend far outside of the city, and operate large sections at ground level, such as on theLine 1,Line 3andLine 4.In Busan, theDonghae Line,while part of theBusan Metrosystem, mostly functions as a commuter rail line.

Southeast Asia

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TheKRL Commuterlineset6000 seriesserves theRangkasbitung Linein Indonesia

InIndonesia,theKRL Commuterlineis the largest commuter rail system in the country, serving theGreater Jakarta.It connects theJakartacity center with surrounding cities and sub-urbans inBantenandWest Javaprovinces, includingDepok,Bogor,Tangerang,Serpong,Rangkasbitung,BekasiandCikarang.In July 2015, KRL Commuterline served more than 850,000 passengers per day, which is almost triple of the 2011 figures, but still less than 3.5% of all Jabodetabek commutes.[17]Other commuter rail systems in Indonesia include theMetro Surabaya Commuter Line,Commuter Line Bandung,KAI Commuter Yogyakarta–Solo Line,Kedung Sepur,and theSri Lelawangsa.

In the Philippines, thePhilippine National Railwayshas two commuter rail systems currently operational; thePNR Metro Commuter Linein theGreater Manila Areaand thePNR Bicol Commuterin theBicol Region.A new commuter rail line in Metro Manila, theNorth–South Commuter Railway,is currently under construction. Its North section is set to be partially opened by 2021.

In Malaysia, there are two commuter services operated byKeretapi Tanah Melayu.They are theKTM Komuterthat servesKuala Lumpurand the surroundingKlang Valley area,and theKTM Komuter Northern Sectorthat servesGreater Penang,Perak,KedahandPerlisin the northern region of Peninsular Malaysia.

In Thailand, theGreater Bangkok Commuter railand theAirport Rail Linkserve theBangkok Metropolitan Region.TheSRT Red Lines,a new commuter line in Bangkok, started construction in 2009. It opened in 2021.

Another commuter rail system in Southeast Asia is theYangon Circular RailwayinMyanmar.

South Asia

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See also:Urban rail transit in India § Suburban rail,andKarachi Circular Railway
Chennai suburban railway
Kolkata Suburban Railwayis the largest suburban railway network in India.

In India, commuter rail systems are present in major cities and form an important part of people's daily lives.Mumbai Suburban Railway,the oldest suburban rail system in Asia, carries more than 7.24 million commuters on a daily basis which constitutes more than half of the total daily passenger capacity of the Indian Railways itself.Kolkata Suburban Railway,one of the largest suburban railway networks in the world, consists of more than 450 stations and carries more than 3.5 million commuters per day. TheChennai Suburban Railwayalong with theChennai MRTS,also covers over 300 stations and carries more than 2.5 million people daily to different areas inChennaiand its surroundings. Other commuter railways in India include theHyderabad MMTS,Delhi Suburban Railway,Pune Suburban RailwayandLucknow-Kanpur Suburban Railway.

In 2020, Government of India approvedBengaluru Suburban Railwayto connectBengaluruand its suburbs. It will be unique and first of its kind in India as it will have metro like facilities and rolling stock.

In Bangladesh, there is one suburban rail called theChittagong Circular Railway.Another suburban railway called theDhaka Circular Railwayis currently proposed.

KarachiinPakistanhas acircular railwaysince 1969.

West Asia

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Tehran Suburban Railway

Tehran Metro currently operates theLine 5commuter line betweenTehranandKaraj.[citation needed]

Turkey has lines connectingBaşkentray,İZBAN,MarmarayandGaziray.[citation needed]

Europe

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See also:Commuter rail in the United KingdomandList of suburban and commuter rail systems
TypeX60at Stockholm Central in Sweden

Major metropolitan areas in most European countries are usually served by extensive commuter/suburban rail systems. Well-known examples includeBG VozinBelgrade(Serbia),S-Bahnin Germany, Austria and German-speaking areas of Switzerland,Proastiakosin Greece,RERin France and Belgium, Servizio ferroviario suburbano in Italy,CercaníasandRodalies(Catalonia) in Spain,CP Urban Servicesin Portugal,EskoinPragueandOstrava(Czech Republic),HÉVinBudapest(Hungary) andDARTinDublin(Ireland).

Western Europe

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Londonhas multiple commuter rail routes:

  • TheElizabeth lineruns on a 22-kilometre (14-mile) east–west twin tunnel under central London (Crossrailproject) as its central core section.
  • Thameslinkbrings together several branches from northern and southern suburbs and satellite towns in to a high frequency central tunnel underneath London.
  • TheLondon Overground,by contrast, skirts through the inner suburbs with lines mostly independent of each other, although there are several branches. TheWatford DC line,partly shared with underground trains, uses third rail, but parallels a main line using overhead wires. TheEast London lineandNorth London linerun at metro-like frequencies in inner London, which make them nearly indistinguishable from metro systems apart from the fact that the tracks are shared with freight trains.
  • TheMetropolitan line,despite being part of theLondon Underground,is a commuter rail route as it links theCity of Londonto commuter towns outsideGreater Londonsuch asRickmansworth,AmershamandChesham,where it runs to a timetable, being the onlyLondon Undergroundline with a public timetable published. It also shares tracks withChiltern Railwaysmain line services between London andAylesbury.

TheMerseyrailnetwork inLiverpoolconsists of two commuter rail routes powered by third rail, both of which branch out at one end. At the other, theNorthern linecontinues out of the city centre to a mainline rail interchange, while theWirral linehas a city-centre loop.

Birminghamhas four suburban routes which operate out ofBirmingham New Street&Birmingham Moor Streetstations, one of which is operated using diesel trains.

TheTyneside Electricssystem inNewcastle upon Tyneexisted from 1904 to 1967 using DC third rail.British Raildid not have the budget to maintain the ageing electrification system. TheRiverside Branchwas closed, while the remaining lines were de-electrified. 13 years later, they were re-electrified using DC overhead wires, and now form theTyne & Wear MetroYellow Line.

Many of the rail services aroundGlasgoware branded asStrathclyde Partnership for Transport.The network includes most electrified Scottish rail routes.

TheWest Yorkshire Passenger Transport Executiverun eleven services which feed into Leeds, connecting the city with commuter areas and neighbouring urban centres in theWest Yorkshire Built-up Area.

MetroWestis a proposed network inBristol,northernSomerset& southernGloucestershire.The four-tracking of the line betweenBristol Temple MeadsandBristol Parkwaystations will enable local rail services to be separated from long-distance trains.

TheRéseau express régional d'Île-de-France(RER) is a commuter rail network in the agglomeration ofParis.In the centre the RER has high frequency underground corridors where several suburban branches feed similar to arapid transitsystem.

Commuter rail systems inGerman-speaking regionsare calledS-Bahn.While in some major cities S-Bahn services run on separate lines exclusively other systems use the existing regional rail tracks.

Stadler KISSandRe 450hauled double-decker cars ofZurich S-Bahn
ATSR train at Milano Porta Venezia railway stationon theMilan Passerby railway, Italy
Turin Metropolitan Railway Service, Italy

In Italy fifteen cities have commuter rail systems:

Randstadspooris a network ofSprintertrain services in and around the city ofUtrechtin the Netherlands. For the realisation of this network, new stations were opened. Separate tracks have been built for these trains, so they can call frequently without disturbing high-frequent Intercity services parallel to these routes.[18]Similar systems are planned forThe HagueandRotterdam.

Northern Europe

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In Sweden, electrified commuter rail systems known asPendeltågare present in the cities ofStockholmandGothenburg.TheStockholm commuter railsystem, which began in 1968, shares railway tracks with inter-city trains and freight trains, but for the most part runs on its own dedicated tracks. It is primarily used to transport passengers from nearby towns and other suburban areas into the city centre, not for transportation inside the city centre. TheGothenburg commuter railsystem, which began in 1960, is similar to the Stockholm system, but does fully share tracks with long-distance trains.

In Norway, theOslo commuter railsystem is from 2022 more limited but the remaining commuter lines go on tracks mostly not much used by other trains. From 2022 several lines with hourly frequency and travel times to endpoints of over one hour are redefined as regional trains. Before 2022 Oslo had the largest commuter rail system in the Nordic countries in terms of line lengths and number of stations. AlsoBergen,StavangerandTrondheimhave commuter rail systems. These have only one or two lines each and they share tracks with other trains.

InFinland,theHelsinki commuter railnetwork runs on dedicated tracks fromHelsinki Central railway stationtoLeppävaaraandKerava.TheRing Rail LineservesHelsinki Airportand northern suburbs ofVantaaand is exclusively used by the commuter rail network. On 15 December 2019, theTampereregion got its own commuter rail service, with trains running from Tampere toNokia,LempääläandOrivesi.

Southern Europe

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InSpain,Cercaníasnetworks exist inMadrid,Sevilla,Murcia/Alicante,San Sebastián,Cádiz,Valencia,Asturias,Santander,Zaragoza,BilbaoandMálaga.All these systems include underground sections in the city centre. There is also a network ofnarrow-gaugecommuter systemsin North Spain and Murcia.

Atocha is the main station in Spain mainly due to the Cercanías.

Cercanías Madridis one of the most important train services in the country, more than 900,000 passengers move in the system. It has underground stations in Madrid likeRecoletos,SolorNuevos Ministeriosand in themetropolitan areain cities likeParlaorGetafe.

RodaliesRenfetrains inEstació de França,Barcelona
Trains in circulation on theFGCLlobregat-Anoia linein 2009

In theautonomous communityofCatalonia,and unlike the rest of Spain, the commuter service is not managed byRenfe Operadora.[19]Since 2010, theGovernment of Cataloniahas managed all the regular commuter services with the "transfer ofRodalies".[20]There are two companies that manage the Catalan commuter network:

TheGovernment of Cataloniawill assume full control of the currentR12regional line in 2024 and it will be owned by theFGC.[28]It will eliminate the current line and replace it with the new commuter lines RL3 and RL4, towardsCerveraandManresafromLleidarespectively.

In Italy there are several commuter rail networks:

SKMtrain in Warsaw, Poland

Eastern Europe

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In Poland, commuter rail systems exist inTricity,Warsaw,Kraków(SKA) andKatowice(SKR). There is also a similar system planned inWrocławandSzczecin.[32]The terms used are "Szybka Kolej Miejska" (fast urban rail) and "kolej aglomeracyjna" (agglomeration rail). These systems are:

TheProastiakos(Greek:Προαστιακός;"suburban" ) isGreece'ssuburbanrailway (commuter rail) services, which are run byTrainOSE,on infrastructure owned by theHellenic Railways Organisation(OSE). There are three Proastiakos networks, servicing the country's three largest cities:Athens,ThessalonikiandPatras.In particular, theAthenian networkis undergoing modifications to completely separate it from mainline traffic, by re-routing the tracks via a tunnel underneath the city center. A similar project is planned for thePatrasnetwork, whereas a new line is due to be constructed for theThessalonian network.

In Romania, the first commuter trains were introduced in December 2019. They operate betweenBucharestand Funduea orBuftea.

BG Vozis an urban rail system that serves Belgrade. It currently has only two routes, with plans for further expansion. Between the early 1990s and mid-2010s, there was another system, known asBeovoz,that was used to providemass-transitservice within the Belgrademetropolitan area,as well as to nearby towns, similarly toRERin Paris. Beovoz had more lines and far more stops than the current system. However, it was abandoned in favor of more accurate BG Voz, mostly due to inefficiency. While current services rely mostly on the existing infrastructure, any further development means furthering capacities (railways expansion and new trains). Plans for further extension of system include another two lines, one of which should reachBelgrade Nikola Tesla Airport.

In Russia, Ukraine and some other countries of the formerSoviet Union,electrical multiple unit passenger suburban trains calledElektrichkaare widespread. The first such system in Russia is the Oranienbaum Electric Line inSt. Petersburg.In Moscow the Beskudnikovskaya railway branch existed between the 1940s and 1980s. The trains that shuttled along it did not go to the main lines, so it was a city transport. Today there are theMoscow Central Circleand theMoscow Central Diameters.

See also:Urban electric transport in Russia

In Turkey,Marmarayline stations fromSirkecitoHalkalıare located at the European side.

Americas

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SEPTA Regional Railserves Philadelphia and its suburbs.

North America

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Main article:Commuter rail in North America

In the United States, Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Mexico regional passenger rail services are provided by governmental or quasi-governmental agencies, with the busiest and most expansive rail networks located in the Northeastern US, California, and Eastern Canada. Most North American commuter railways utilizediesel locomotivepropulsion, with the exception of services in New York City, Philadelphia, Chicago, Denver, San Francisco, and Mexico City; New York's commuter rail lines use a combination of third rail and overhead wire power generation, while Chicago only has two out of twelve services that are electrified. Many newer and proposed systems in Canada and the United States are often are geared to serving peak-hour commutes as opposed to the all-day systems of Europe, East Asia, and Australia.

Long Island Rail Roadis the busiest commuter railroad in North America.
TheFrontRunnercommuter rail system serves Utah'sWasatch Front.
WES Commuter Railis a DMU operated commuter rail line in Oregon.
United States
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Main article:List of United States commuter rail systems

Eight commuter rail systems in the United States carried over ten million trips each in 2018, those being in descending order:

Other commuter rail systems in the United States (not in ridership order) are:

Canada
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UP ExpressandGO Transitboth serve the Toronto area.
Mexico
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Central America
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South America

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TheMitre Lineis part of the extensiveBuenos Aires metropolitan rail system.

Examples include an 899 km (559 mi) commuter system in theBuenos Aires metropolitan area,the 225 km (140 mi) longSuperviainRio de Janeiro,theMetrotréninSantiago,Chile,and theValparaíso MetroinValparaíso,Chile.

Another example isCompanhia Paulista de Trens Metropolitanos(CPTM) inGreater São Paulo,Brazil.CPTM has 94 stations with seven lines, numbered starting on 7 (the lines 1 to 6 and the line 15 belong to theSão Paulo Metro), with a total length of 273 kilometres (170 mi). Trains operates at high frequencies on tracks used exclusively for commuter traffic. InRio de JaneiroSuperViaprovides electrified commuter rail services.

Oceania

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See also:Rail transport in Australia
ASiemens Nexasused on theMetro Trains Melbournenetwork

The five major cities in Australia have suburban railway systems in their metropolitan areas. These networks have frequent services, with frequencies varying from every 10 to every 30 minutes on most suburban lines, and up to 3–5 minutes in peak on bundled underground lines in the city centres of Sydney, Brisbane, Perth and Melbourne. The networks in each state developed from mainline railways and have never been completely operationally separate from long distance and freight traffic, unlikemetrosystems. The suburban networks are almost completely electrified.

The main suburban rail networks in Australia are:

  • Melbourne's rail networkfeatures sixteen electrified commuter rail lines traversing the city centre in the undergroundCity Loopproviding a metro-like service in the central core. A second underground core is under construction, as theMetro Tunnelproject.V/Lineoperates some commuter services between Melbourne and surrounding towns, as well as between Melbourne and some locations within the Melbourne metropolitan area.
  • Commuter rail services inBrisbaneare provided under theQueensland Rail City networkbrand, featuring twelve electrified lines converging in the city centre.Cross River Railis an under construction underground cross-city tunnel to relieve pressure on this network.

New Zealand has two frequent suburban rail services comparable to those in Australia: theAuckland rail networkis operated byAuckland One Railand theWellington rail networkis operated byTransdev Wellington.

Hybrid systems

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Hybridurban-suburban railsystems exhibiting characteristics of both rapid transit and commuter rail serving ametropolitan regionare common in German-speaking countries, where they are known asS-Bahn.Other examples include:Lazio regional railwaysinRome,theRERin France and theElizabeth line,London UndergroundMetropolitan line,London OvergroundandMerseyrailin the UK. Comparable systems can be found in Australia such asSydney TrainsandMetro Trains Melbourne,and in Japan with many urban and suburban lines operated by JR East/West and third-party companies running at metro-style frequencies. In contrast, comparable systems of this type are generally rare in the United States and Canada, where peak hour frequencies are more common.

In Asia, the construction of higher speed urban-suburban rail links has gained traction in various countries, such as in India, with theDelhi RRTS,in China, with thePearl River Delta Metropolitan Region intercity railway,and in South Korea, with theGreat Train eXpresssystem. These systems usually run on dedicated elevated or underground tracks for most of their route and have features comparable toHigher-speed rail.

See also

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References

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