2024-04-30 20:13:14
The trains from Bern to Milan will be canceled for three months, from June to September. Even if you want to take the train to Hamburg, Stuttgart or Paris, you have to take a longer journey. The responsible politicians capitulate – except for one Ticino resident.
Leandra Sommaruga / ch media
From Lucerne to Paris? This might be difficult in the summer due to construction work.Bild: KEYSTONE
Milan, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Paris: Getting to these destinations by train will be difficult or even impossible this summer. The reason is the same everywhere: construction sites. In Switzerland, maintenance work is carried out at night in order to maintain the regular schedule. In neighboring countries such as Germany, routes are being closed. This summer, a number of people in all neighboring countries are affected. However, the Bern-Milan interruption caused a particular uproar.
From June 9th to September 8th, part of the line in Italy will be closed to train traffic. It was announced last August that renovation work would take place between Bern and Milan on the Italian side. Replacement buses will run on the route during the three months. However, these have lower capacity and the journey time will take longer, as the SBB writes. Only a few days ago, the Ticino National Councilor Bruno Storni (SP) found out that the route was to be completely closed to train traffic for three months. He then submitted a letter to the Federal Council to the Transport Commission.
Outcry from Ticino
He calls for the Bern-Brig-Milan connection to be maintained by rail. This possibility exists. “The trains might run via Borgomanero and Novara,” suggests Storni. This route is not overloaded. Introducing a few connections in the morning and evening should be possible.
A majority in the Transport Commission today decided that it was too late to act at such short notice. “Embarrassing,” says Storni, commenting on the decision. When the freight train derailed in the Gotthard Base Tunnel last August, the SBB was able to reschedule the traffic within three days. The responsibility does not lie with the SBB. Trenitalia operates the affected section of the route. The problem is that the SBB had probably already planned to close the route before the accident in the Gotthard Base Tunnel: “The passengers might have been expected to travel via Zurich to Milan,” says Storni. That would have meant an additional hour of travel time.
The journey over the Gotthard panoramic route now takes almost two hours longer. The Ticino fears that even more people will want to drive through the Gotthard by car – and that the convoys of vehicles in front of the Gotthard will become even longer.
The Uri National Councilor Simon Stadler (center) also sympathizes with the international trend of moving traffic from road to rail. However, Switzerland is very dependent on foreign countries for international rail connections. The construction work on the Bern-Milan route is the responsibility of Italy. “Switzerland’s scope for action is very limited,” says Stadler. The loss of the connection can mean an additional burden for his canton. However, traffic jams are a well-known problem in the canton of Uri. The measures that the canton has taken to manage motorway exits are slowly starting to have an effect.
Replacement buses and unserviced stops
There is an alternative route to Milan for travelers from Lausanne and Geneva. A replacement bus will run three times a day between Geneva and Milan via the Great Saint Bernard, with a stop in Lausanne. Reservations are mandatory, the number of seats is limited. As SBB media spokesman Martin Meier writes, the journey time will be extended by around an hour. In August, an additional extension of the travel time is possible due to cumulative construction work.
There is no substitute for those who want to travel by train to German-speaking countries. The trains from Basel to Hamburg will be canceled from July 15th to December 14th. The Zurich-Stuttgart route will also not be served continuously between August 3rd and September 6th. Travelers heading to Austria will have to find their own solutions if the route between Buchs SG and Feldkirch is closed from August 10th to September 9th. A replacement concept is currently still in the works. (aargauerzeitung.ch/lyn)
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