The Gotthard axis in the twentieth century: from the road tunnel to AlpTransit

Electrification, the road and the second Gotthard committee

Under the Federal Railways the Gotthard line was among the first main lines to be electrified. The shortage of coal during the First World War, when Switzerland depended on imported coal for its steam locomotives, made the use of domestic hydroelectric power a matter of national security. On 16 February 1916 the board of the Federal Railways decided to electrify the line, both to free it from foreign coal supplies and to raise the capacity of the mountain section. Electric operation on the whole line with alternating current at 15 kilovolts and 16.7 hertz, supplied by overhead line, was completed in 1922.¹ Electric traction increased the capacity of the mountain ramps and reduced the travel time between Basel and Chiasso, and for the next half century the line remained the main north–south railway of Switzerland.

The motor car brought the road back. After the Second World War, traffic over the Gotthard pass road grew rapidly, but the pass was closed for several months each winter, and cars had to be loaded onto trains between Göschenen and Airolo. On 30 June 1954 a second Gotthard committee was founded in Lucerne by seven cantons (Lucerne, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Schwyz, Uri, Ticino and Zug), several cities and automobile associations, with the aim of a road connection to Ticino that would be open in winter.² The Federal Council approved the inclusion of a road tunnel in the national road network on 25 June 1965. Construction began on 5 May 1970, and the Gotthard road tunnel, about 16.9 kilometres long, opened on 5 September 1980. With the motorway over the Monte Ceneri, which has joined the Sopraceneri and the Sottoceneri since 1984, Ticino was connected to the north by a motorway open all year.³

The road tunnel changed the economics of transit. Lorries could now cross the Alps in hours without loading onto trains, and freight traffic on the road grew much faster than on the railway. The tunnel's single tube with two-way traffic was also a safety risk. After a collision between two lorries caused a fire on 24 October 2001 that killed eleven people, and with the need to renovate the tube, the Federal Assembly decided to build a second tube for the period of renovation. In the referendum of 28 February 2016 the voters approved the amendment of the Federal Act on Road Transit Traffic in the Alpine Region with 57.0 per cent, Ticino with 57.8 per cent and Uri with 53.0 per cent. The law provides that only one lane per tube may be used when both tubes are open, so that the capacity of the transit road does not increase.⁴ The second tube, about 16.9 kilometres long and estimated to cost CHF 2.14 billion, is under construction, with tunnel boring machines at work since February 2025. It is expected to open around 2030, after which the old tube will be renovated, so that both tubes should be in operation by 2033.⁵

Notes

1. Wikipedia, "Gotthard railway" (as above), for electrification in 1922 at 15 kV 16.7 Hz; Wikipedia (de), "Gotthardbahn" (as above): "Die Elektrifizierung der Strecke wurde am 16. Februar 1916 durch den Verwaltungsrat der SBB beschlossen, um einerseits von ausländischen Kohlelieferungen unabhängig zu werden und andererseits die Leistungsfähigkeit der Bergstrecke zu erhöhen." ↩
2. Meister, Geschichte des Gotthard-Komitees (as above), for the committee of 1954 and for 25 June 1965, 5 May 1970 and 5 September 1980; Verkehrshaus der Schweiz, "Major construction site in the heart of the Alps", https://www.verkehrshaus.ch/en/magazine/major-construction-site-in-the-heart-of-the-alps.html, for the length of 16.9 kilometres (of the new tube). ↩
3. HLS, art. "Ceneri, Monte" (as above): "dal 1984 Sopra e Sottoceneri sono uniti dall'autostrada". ↩
4. Swissvotes, short description of vote no. 599 (28 February 2016), https://swissvotes.ch/vote/599.00/kurzbeschreibung-de.pdf; Swiss Federal Council, "Gotthard-Strassentunnel", https://www.admin.ch/de/gotthard-strassentunnel; Wikipedia (de), "Gotthard-Strassentunnel", https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gotthard-Strassentunnel (used as a last resort), for the fire of 24 October 2001 ("Elf Menschen starben bei dem Unglück"). ↩
5. Verkehrshaus der Schweiz, "Major construction site" (as above). ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of October 2026.