The “FLUX – Golden transport hub” award is one of the most important awards in Swiss public transportation. The prize is awarded to a transport hub that is not only customer friendly, but also excels from an operational and design point of view. It is awarded every year by PostBus Switzerland Ltd, the Swiss Transport and Environment Association (Verkehrsclub Schweiz) and the Swiss Association of Public Transport.

The 2017 award focused on “leisure hubs with meter gauges”. There are around 100 railway hubs with meter gauges across Switzerland, one of which is Château-d’Oex. A fifth of them have been renovated over the last few years and were assessed by the FLUX jury. Château-d’Oex (VD), Arosa (GR) and Innertkirchen (BE) made the final selection, but Château-d’Oex took home the prize.

The Château-d’Oex train station was extensively renovated in 2015 and has helped to position the town as a destination in its own right between established tourist magnets Montreux and Gstaad. FLUX jurors were impressed by the careful design of the station building and the underpass, which also doubles as a work of art. Paintings of local personalities such as British actor
David Niven, who had his chalet in the village, adorn the walls, giving the new passageway, which connects the northern and southern parts of the village, local charm.

The FLUX award was given to Château-d’Oex community representatives as part of the PostAuto Transport Forum Movimento in Bern last December. PostBus, the Transport Club Switzerland (VCS) and the Association of Public Transport (VöV) sponsored the awards for the eleventh time, and awarded CHF 5,000 to the winning municipality.

Anne Christine Kempton / AvS