Editing Basel (section)

== Infrastructure ==

=== Quarters ===
Basel is subdivided into 19 quarters (''Quartiere''). The municipalities of [[Riehen]] and [[Bettingen]], outside the city limits of Basel, are included in the canton of Basel-Stadt as rural quarters (''Landquartiere'').

{| class="wikitable collapsible autocollapse sortable"
|-
! Quartier
! Area
! Population <br />(March 2012<ref name="Basel_stat_2012">[http://www.statistik-bs.ch/tabellen/t01/1 Canton of Basel-Stadt Statistics] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120505012358/http://www.statistik-bs.ch/tabellen/t01/1/|date=5 May 2012}}, MS Excel document – ''Bevölkerung nach Wohnviertel im März 2012'' {{in lang|de}} accessed 3 May 2012</ref><small>)</small>
! Population density <br />(people/km2)
|-
| Altstadt Grossbasel (historic city) || style="text-align:right;"| 37.63 || style="text-align:right;"| 2,044 || style="text-align:right;"| {{Pop density|2044|.3763|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Vorstädte (historical suburbs) || style="text-align:right;"| 89.66 || style="text-align:right;"| 4,638|| style="text-align:right;"| {{Pop density|4638|.8966|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Am Ring || style="text-align:right;"| 90.98 || style="text-align:right;"| 10,512|| style="text-align:right;"| {{Pop density|10512|.9098|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Breite || style="text-align:right;"|68.39 || style="text-align:right;"| 8,655|| style="text-align:right;"| {{Pop density|8655|.6839|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| St. Alban || style="text-align:right;"| 294.46 || style="text-align:right;"| 10,681|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|10681|2.94|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Gundeldingen || style="text-align:right;"|123.19 || style="text-align:right;"| 18,621|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|18621|1.23|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Bruderholz || style="text-align:right;"|259.61 || style="text-align:right;"| 9,006|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|9006|2.59|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Bachletten || style="text-align:right;"|151.39 || style="text-align:right;"| 13,330|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|13330|1.51|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Gotthelf || style="text-align:right;"|46.62 || style="text-align:right;"| 6,784|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|6784|.4662|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Iselin || style="text-align:right;"|109.82 || style="text-align:right;"| 16,181|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|16181|1.09|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| St. Johann || style="text-align:right;"|223.90 || style="text-align:right;"| 18,560|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|18560|2.23|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Altstadt Kleinbasel (historic city) || style="text-align:right;"| 24.21 || style="text-align:right;"| 2,276|| style="text-align:right;"| {{Pop density|2276|.2421|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Clara || style="text-align:right;"| 23.66 || style="text-align:right;"| 4,043|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|4043|.2366|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Wettstein || style="text-align:right;"| 75.44 || style="text-align:right;"| 5,386|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|5386|.7544|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Hirzbrunnen || style="text-align:right;"| 305.32 || style="text-align:right;"| 8,676|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|8676|3.05|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Rosental || style="text-align:right;"| 64.33 || style="text-align:right;"| 5,180|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|5180|.6433|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Mattäus || style="text-align:right;"| 59.14 || style="text-align:right;"| 16,056|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|16056|.5914|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Klybeck || style="text-align:right;"| 91.19 || style="text-align:right;"| 7,234|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|7234|.9119|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| Kleinhüningen || style="text-align:right;"| 136.11 || style="text-align:right;"| 2,772|| style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|2772|1.36|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| '''City of Basel''' || style="text-align:right;"| '''2275.05''' || style="text-align:right;"| {{Swiss populations|CH-BS|2701}}<small>{{Swiss populations ref|CH-BS}}</small> || style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|{{Swiss populations NC|CH-BS|2701}}|22.7|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| [[Bettingen]] || style="text-align:right;"| 222.69 || style="text-align:right;"| {{Swiss populations|CH-BS|2702}}<small>{{Swiss populations ref|CH-BS}}</small> || style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|{{Swiss populations NC|CH-BS|2702}}|2.2|km2|disp=num}}
|-
| [[Riehen]] || style="text-align:right;"| 1086.10 || style="text-align:right;"| {{Swiss populations|CH-BS|2703}}<small>{{Swiss populations ref|CH-BS}}</small> || style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|{{Swiss populations NC|CH-BS|2703}}|10.8|km2|disp=num}}
|-
|'''Canton of Basel-Stadt''' || style="text-align:right;"| '''3583.84''' || style="text-align:right;"| {{Swiss populations|CH-BS|CH-BS}}<small>{{Swiss populations ref|CH-BS}}</small> || style="text-align:right;"|{{Pop density|{{Swiss populations NC|CH-BS|CH-BS}}|35.8|km2|disp=num}}
|}

=== Transport ===
Basel's airport, [[EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg]], is set up for airfreight; heavy goods reach the city and the heart of [[continental Europe]] from [[North Sea|the North Sea]] by ship along the Rhine.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

==== Port ====
{{See also|Merchant Marine of Switzerland}}
[[File:Middle Bridge, Basel, Switzerland.JPG|thumb|The Rhine in Basel as Switzerland's gateway to the sea]]
Basel has Switzerland's only cargo port, through which goods pass along the navigable stretches of the [[Rhine]] and connect to ocean-going ships at the [[port of Rotterdam]].

==== Air transport ====
[[EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg]] is operated jointly by two countries, France and Switzerland, although the airport is located completely on French soil. The airport itself is split into two architecturally independent sectors, one half serving the French side and the other half serving the Swiss side; prior to [[Schengen Agreement|Schengen]] there was an immigration inspection point at the middle of the airport so that people could "emigrate" to the other side of the airport.

==== Railways ====
[[File:Bahnhof Basel SBB (50196008388).jpg|thumb|right|[[Basel SBB railway station|Basel SBB]] station, built in 1907]]
Basel was the first Swiss city with a railway station and it has long held an important place as a rail hub.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Burckhardt|first=Paul|title=Geschichte der Stadt Basel von der Zeit der Reformation bis zur Gegenwart|publisher=Helbing & Lichtenhahn|year=1942|location=Basel|pages=263}}</ref> Three main railway stations—those of the [[Rail transport in Switzerland|Swiss]], [[Rail transport in France|French]] and [[Rail transport in Germany|German]] networks—lie within the city, although the Swiss ([[Basel SBB railway station|Basel SBB]]) and French ([[Basel SBB railway station|Bâle SNCF]]) stations are actually in the same complex, separated by customs and immigration facilities. The German [[Basel Badischer Bahnhof]] (abbreviated to {{lang|de|Basel Bad Bf}}) is on the northern side of the city. Two other, smaller stations within the city limits are {{rws|Basel Dreispitz}} and {{rws|Basel St. Johann}}. All stations are connected to the local [[Basler Verkehrsbetriebe|tram and bus network]] (BVB). Basel's regional rail services are supplied by the [[Basel S-Bahn]], which links the city with destinations in Switzerland, France and Germany.

Most long-distance trains call at Basel SBB station, such as [[EuroCity|EC]], [[TGV Lyria|TGV]], [[Intercity Express|ICE]], [[InterCity (Switzerland)|IC]] and [[InterRegio#Switzerland|IR]] services. The ICE also calls at Basel Bad Bf. The new [[high-speed rail|high-speed]] ICE railway line from [[Karlsruhe–Basel high-speed railway|Karlsruhe to Basel]] was completed in 2008 while phase I of the [[LGV Rhin-Rhône|TGV Rhine-Rhône]] line, opened in December 2011, has reduced travel time from Basel to Paris to about 3 hours.<ref>{{Cite web |title=SNCF website, TGV Lyria 9218 |url=http://www.infolignes.com/recherche.php?date_num_train=2012%7C05%7C14&type_heure=1&train_horaire_depart=14%7C00&next_horaire=14%7C00&num_train=9218 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140930202505/http://www.infolignes.com/recherche.php?date_num_train=2012%7C05%7C14&type_heure=1&train_horaire_depart=14%7C00&next_horaire=14%7C00&num_train=9218 |archive-date=30 September 2014 |access-date=2025-05-20 |website=SNCF Group |language=en}}</ref>

The largest goods railway complex of the country<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.basel.com/en/getting-there-exploring-the-city/Basel-s-railway-stations|title=Arrival by train|access-date=16 October 2020|archive-date=17 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201017223940/https://www.basel.com/en/getting-there-exploring-the-city/Basel-s-railway-stations|url-status=live}}</ref> is located just outside the city, spanning the [[municipalities of Switzerland|municipalities]] of [[Muttenz]] and [[Pratteln]].

==== Roads ====
Basel is located on the [[A3 motorway (Switzerland)|A3 motorway]].

Within the city limits, five bridges connect Greater and Lesser Basel (downstream):

* Schwarzwaldbrücke (built 1972)
* Wettsteinbrücke (current structure built 1998, original bridge built 1879)
* [[Mittlere Rheinbrücke]] ({{lit|Middle Rhine bridge}}, current structure built 1905, original bridge built 1225 as the first bridge to cross the Rhine)
* Johanniterbrücke (built 1967)
* Dreirosenbrücke (built 2004, original bridge built 1935)

==== Ferries ====
A somewhat anachronistic yet still widely used system of [[reaction ferry]] boats links the two shores. There are four ferries, each situated approximately midway between two bridges. Each is attached by a cable to a block that rides along another cable spanning the river at a height of {{convert|20|to|30|m|abbr=off}}. To cross the river, the ferryman orients the boat around 45° from the current so that the current pushes the boat across the river. This form of transportation is therefore completely hydraulically driven, requiring no outside energy source.
[[File:River ferry (Basel, Switzerland).jpg|thumb|Cable ferry across the Rhine in Basel]]

==== Public transport ====
[[File:Basel - Straßenbahnnetzplan.png|thumb|Basel tram network]]
Basel has an extensive public transportation network serving the city and connecting to surrounding suburbs, including a large [[Basel Trams|tram network]]. Today, Basel has the largest tramway in terms of kilometers of rail tracks in Switzerland.<ref name="Appenzeller">Appenzeller, Stephan (1995).p.55</ref> Historically, only [[Geneva]] had a larger one at some point.<ref name="Appenzeller"/>

The green-colored local [[light rail|trams]] and buses are operated by the [[Basler Verkehrs-Betriebe]] (BVB). The yellow-colored buses and trams are operated by the [[Baselland Transport]] (BLT), and connect areas in the nearby half-canton of Baselland to central Basel. The BVB also shares commuter bus lines in cooperation with transit authorities in the neighboring Alsace region in France and [[Baden]] region in Germany. The [[Basel Regional S-Bahn]], the commuter rail network connecting to suburbs surrounding the city, is jointly operated by [[Schweizerische Bundesbahnen|SBB]], [[SNCF]] and [[Deutsche Bahn|DB]].

==== Border crossings ====
Basel is located at the meeting point of France, Germany, and Switzerland; because it sits on the Swiss national border and is beyond the [[Jura Mountains]], many within the [[Swiss military]] reportedly believe that the city is indefensible during wartime.<ref name="mcphee19831031">{{cite news | url=http://archives.newyorker.com/default.aspx?iid=16248&startpage=page0000103#folio=050 | title=La Place de la Concorde Suisse-I | magazine=The New Yorker | date=31 October 1983 | access-date=22 July 2013 | author=McPhee, John | pages=50 | archive-date=14 July 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714230210/http://archives.newyorker.com/default.aspx?iid=16248&startpage=page0000103#folio=050 | url-status=live }}</ref> It has numerous road and rail crossings between Switzerland and the other two countries. With Switzerland joining the [[Schengen Area]] on 12 December 2008, immigration checks were no longer carried out at the crossings. However, Switzerland did not join the [[European Union Customs Union]] (though it did join the [[EU Single Market]]) and customs checks are still conducted at or near the crossings.
[[File:Basel-blt-tram-10-stadler-882129.jpg|thumb|Tram in the city centre (Bankverein)]]

'''France-Switzerland''' (from east to west) 
* '''Road crossings''' (with French road name continuation)
** Kohlenstrasse (Avenue de Bâle, Huningue). This crossing replaces the former crossing Hüningerstrasse further east.
** Elsässerstrasse (Avenue de Bâle, Saint-Louis)
** Autobahn A3 ([[A35 autoroute]], Saint-Louis), crossing [[Mulhouse]], [[Colmar]] and [[Strasbourg]].
** [[EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg]] – pedestrian walkway between the French and Swiss sections on Level 3 (departures) of airport.
** Burgfelderstrasse (Rue du 1er Mars, Saint Louis)
* '''Railway crossing'''
** [[Basel SBB railway station]]

'''Germany-Switzerland''' (clockwise, from north to south)
* '''Road crossings''' (with German road name continuation)
** Hiltalingerstrasse (Zollstraße, [[Weil am Rhein]]). Tram 8 goes along this road to Weil am Rhein. The extension opened in 2014; it used to end before the border.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tram8.info|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140110192710/http://tram8.info/|url-status=dead|title=Tram 8 construction information page|archivedate=10 January 2014}}</ref>
** Autobahn A2 ([[Bundesautobahn 5|Autobahn A5]], [[Weil am Rhein]])
** Freiburgerstrasse (Baslerstraße, [[Weil am Rhein]])
** Weilstrasse, [[Riehen]] (Haupstraße, [[Weil am Rhein]])
** Lörracherstrasse, [[Riehen]] (Baslerstraße, Stetten, [[Lörrach]])
** Inzlingerstrasse, [[Riehen]] (Riehenstraße, [[Inzlingen]])
** Grenzacherstrasse (Hörnle, [[Grenzach-Wyhlen]])
* '''Railway crossing'''
** Between Basel SBB and [[Basel Badischer Bahnhof]] – Basel Badischer Bahnhof, and all other railway property and stations on the right bank of the Rhine belong to [[Deutsche Bundesbahn|DB]] and are classed as German customs territory. Immigration and customs checks are conducted at the platform exit tunnel for passengers leaving trains here.

Additionally there are many footpaths and cycle tracks crossing the border between Basel and Germany.

=== Health ===
[[File:Basel 2012-10-05 Batch (61).JPG|thumb|University Children's Hospital Basel]]
As the biggest town in the Northwest of Switzerland numerous public and private health centres are located in Basel. Among others the [[University Hospital of Basel|Universitätsspital Basel]] and the Universitätskinderspital Basel. Private health centres include the Bethesda Spital and the Merian Iselin Klinik. Additionally the [[Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute]] is located in Basel too.

=== Energy ===
Basel is at the forefront of a national vision to more than halve energy use in Switzerland by 2050. To research, develop and commercialise the technologies and techniques required for the country to become a [[2000-watt society|2000 Watt society]], a number of projects have been set up since 2001 in the Basel metropolitan area. These include demonstration buildings constructed to [[Minergie]] or ''[[Passive house|Passivhaus]]'' standards, electricity generation from [[renewable energy]] sources,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/front/detail/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=7407138|title=Geothermal project shakes Basel again|work=SWI swissinfo.ch|access-date=1 September 2015|archive-date=30 May 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080530231218/http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/front/detail/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=7407138|url-status=dead}}</ref> and vehicles using natural gas, [[hydrogen economy|hydrogen]] and [[biogas]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.basel.ch/en/basel/urban_development/2000_watt_society|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20090111061314/http://www.basel.ch/en/basel/urban_development/2000_watt_society|url-status=dead|title=The Basel pilot region of the 2000 Watt Society|archivedate=11 January 2009}}</ref>

A building construction law was passed in 2002 also which stated that all new flat roofs must be greened leading to Basel becoming the world's leading green roof city. This was driven by an energy saving programme.<ref>Carter, J.G. 2011, "Climate change adaptation in European cities", Current Opinion in Environmental Sustainability, vol. 3, no. 3, pp. 193–198.</ref> A [[Enhanced geothermal systems|hot dry rock geothermal energy]] project was cancelled in 2009 since it caused [[induced seismicity in Basel]].