The Turgi–Koblenz–Waldshut railway line is a railway line in Switzerland. It runs from Turgi in Switzerland via Koblenz to Waldshut in Germany. The Turgi–Koblenz–Waldshut line was the first rail link between Germany and Switzerland. It was opened on 18 August 1859 by the Swiss Northeastern Railway (, NOB). It provides a connection from the Baden–Brugg line in Turgi to the High Rhine Railway in Waldshut. Two branch lines were later built to Koblenz station: on 1 August 1876 the Winterthur–Bülach–Koblenz railway line opened via Eglisau and Bülach to Winterthur, and on 1 August 1892 the line opened to Stein-Säckingen, connecting to Basel. History The story begins two years before the opening of the Swiss Northern Railway. In 1845 a delegation travelled from Zürich to Baden to promote a concession for a railway from Basel to Waldshut. This would allow a connection towards Zürich. The line would cross the Aar river in Döttingen. It was proposed that the line would form an access route to a railway through the Splügen Pass or the Lukmanier Pass. In Zurich, however, a railway through the Gotthard Pass was favoured. Yet in 1847 a project to build a Lukmanier railway was approved, under an agreement "for the purpose of establishing a Lukmanier Railway Company". A bridge at Koblenz was well placed for such a railway. But after 1861, the NOB also supported the Gotthard project, while the Splügen project was filed away. The route was just right for the NOB's planned network, as it allowed for a direct connection with the German rail network. Technically the slope of the Aare valley was ideal for the line and runs through a natural gap in the mountains to the Rhine valley. On 26 August 1857 a treaty was signed in Karlsruhe with a validity of 99 years (until 1956, although it was replaced by a new treaty in 1950). The treaty specified a maximum gradient of 1.2 percent and the operation three pairs of trains per day. The deadline for completion was set as 1 May 1860. This deadline was beaten and the line was opened on 18 August 1859. The line was single track, but the planning and construction provided for eventual duplication. So the embankments, culverts, tunnels and bridges were designed for two tracks. The line was electrified during the Second World War because of coal shortages and rising coal prices. Electrical operations commenced between