Strengthening rail traffic – Italy promises expansion of Lötschberg-Simplon axis – News



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  • Italy is expanding the 4-meter corridor from the Lötschberg-Simplon axis to Novara by 2028.
  • Switzerland and Italy signed a corresponding agreement on the sidelines of an international meeting to complete the Ceneri base tunnel in Ticino.
  • Switzerland contributes 148 million francs to the expansion. The money comes from the loan to expand the access routes to the Neat.

At the north portal of the Ceneri Base Tunnel, the Italian Transport Minister Paola de Micheli was delighted the day before the tunnel opened: “Sono emozionata,” she said. The opening of this tunnel is important for her country, which has a “very ambitious investment plan” in the railway sector.

Part of this plan is the new agreement between Italy and Switzerland on the expansion of railway lines on the Italian side of the border. This is not the Ceneri tunnel, but the nearby Lötschberg-Simplon axis.

Italy is committed to expanding this for freight traffic by 2028, so that semi-trailers with a corner height of four meters can be continuously transported by rail to large transshipment terminals in northern Italy. Switzerland contributes 148 million francs to the expansion, which comes from the loan to expand access routes to the Neat. “Switzerland and Italy not only say they want to work together, they also do it,” concluded de Micheli.

International meeting

Micheli’s Italian Transport Minister’s visit was part of an international meeting of women politicians. Presenter: Federal President Simonetta Sommaruga. On the eve of the opening of the Ceneri Base Tunnel, the delegations of neighboring countries signed a joint declaration on the strengthening of rail systems in Europe. Night trains should become a viable alternative to air travel. Austrian Transport Minister Leonore Gewessler spoke of a “new era of green travel.” The Austrian government supports this development, even if night trains are very expensive.

Other states sign agreements

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The declaration on the strengthening of a transport system respectful of the environment and the climate was also signed by correspondence by the Principality of Liechtenstein and the other bordering countries with the two European rail freight corridors Rhine-Alps and North Sea-Mediterranean (France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg), according to a statement. of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC).

Together with the delegations, Sommaruga then took a look at the north portal of the Ceneri in Camorino. She described the completion of NEAT as an “epic achievement” and emphasized the importance of commissioning the tunnel.

Ceneri tunnel opening

The official opening ceremony of the Ceneri Base Tunnel will take place in Camorino on Friday morning. With the commissioning of the tunnel in southern Switzerland, the new Alpine-rail cross-section (NEAT) is completed.

It’s about more than just tunneling, Sommaruga said. “In Switzerland there are more holes in the mountains than in our cheese,” he joked. Sommaruga described the completion of the Neat (New Railway Alpine Transversal) as an “epic achievement.” Now the Alps had a continuous flat track. Not least, this helps protect the Alps.

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