Lausanne, Switzerland (TSR, Fre) – The talks are only exploratory and will remain theoretical, but Vaud cantonal councilor François Marthaler has met with a group of private investors, whose identity he will not reveal except to say they are European, to discuss a possible private-public approach to building a third rail line between Lausanne and Geneva.

The overloaded service betweent the cities and the rapid growth of rail travelers in the Lake Geneva region, the highest rate in Switzerland in 2008 to date, has politicians scrambling for ways to finance, build and operate a third rail to ease the situation. The federal government in its longterm rail plan has not included the project as a priority, although discussions remain open.

The main Swiss rail system is run by the government-funded CFF company.