Gotthard tunnel, restoration completed: trains starting on 2 September

Clearing the way for the crossing of the Alpine passes with Switzerland. Since the derailment of the goods train on 10 August 2023, the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB) have accelerated the work in the San Gotthard base tunnel to a maximum in order to restore it. This is a strategic infrastructure also for Italy, because it guarantees the transit of goods trains to Europe. Part of Italian exports travel through the Gotthard rail tunnel. At the moment, everything is proceeding as planned. Sbb expects to be able to fully recommission the world's longest railway tunnel (57 kilometres) from Monday 2 September 2024. In this way, trains will be able to run again with the journey times prior to the derailment, thus taking one hour less than if they were diverted along the Gotthard panoramic line. A note issued by SBB informs that the test phase was successfully completed last week and the Federal Office of Transport granted permission for the first commercial train to run on Monday 19 August 2024 in the restored west tube (tunnel) of the Gotthard Base Tunnel. Opening the new phase was the passenger train departing at 5.30 a.m. from Chiasso to Basel. The second train was a goods train operated by Sbb Cargo International from Ludwigshafen (Germany) to Gallarate (Italy).

In preparation for the full recommissioning of the Gotthard Base Tunnel on 2 September 2024, Swiss Railways has planned a test and trial phase similar to those carried out for the commissioning of the tunnel in 2016. The test phase with measurement, test and service trains was successfully completed last week. Before the full reopening, Sbb carries out repeated cleaning passes. To ensure optimal interaction with the cleaning, for the test phase that began on Monday 19 August 2024, with the exception of the first train, southbound trains (direction Italy) will run in the west tube of the Gotthard Base Tunnel.

As of the full recommissioning on 2 September 2024, all Intercity and Eurocity trains and goods trains between German-speaking Switzerland and Ticino will once again run through the Gotthard base tunnel. Travellers will thus be able to travel from north to south and back again, saving an hour and, for the first time, with connections every half hour throughout the day. In the Gotthard base tunnel, passenger trains will be able to run at a maximum speed of 230 km/h as before.

The final report on the cause of the accident by the Swiss Safety Investigation Service has yet to be published, but in an interim report it was established that the derailment was caused by the broken wheel disc of a freight wagon. The convoy that left the tracks on 10 August 2023 was bound for Germany. In its own fleet, Swiss Railways has no freight or passenger vehicles with this type of wheel, but it is used in freight traffic by other railway companies in Europe and therefore also circulates in Switzerland. For this reason, measures must be defined at European level for wheels used internationally. The Federal Office of Transport has appealed to the European railway authorities to oblige all owners of freight wagons using vehicles with similar wheels to check them and, if necessary, to take them out of service.