Construction
Despite being such a vast undertaking, the NRLA progresses quickly. Construction does not begin officially until 1999. The most spectacular structures of the NRLA, the Lötschberg and Gotthard tunnels, would not have been possible without the efforts of thousands of workers from all over the world. Using gigantic tunnel-boring machines, they cut through the mountains five times faster than the men who built the first Gotthard tunnel around 140 years ago.
An iron road made of steel
The rail is not a standard design: it goes through multiple variants in the course of its development.
View eventKeeping danger in check
Building a tunnel is a dangerous undertaking for those working on it. Various construction sites at the Gotthard attest to the fact that safety precautions are being progressively improved.
View eventInauguration of the Gotthard Tunnel
When it opens, the first tunnel through the Gotthard is the longest rail tunnel in the world. It is mostly financed by foreign capital.
View eventThe second tunnel
After the Gotthard, the Simplon Tunnel becomes the second rail line through the Swiss Alps. Now, western Switzerland is connected to the south.
View eventLink through the Lötschberg
The Lötschberg line and its tunnel connect Switzerland’s western plateau with Italy.
View eventThe first base tunnel
Long before the Gotthard and Lötschberg, the first base tunnel in Swiss rail history is driven through the hills at Hauenstein near Olten.
View eventWater replaces coal
Electrification of the Gotthard line is completed in 1924. Switzerland now gets the energy to power its trains from its own hydroelectric plants rather than coal from Prussia.
View eventRail 2000
For all the talk of the NRLA, Rail 2000 is also a big part of the story. It encouraged the drive towards a denser rail network and an expanded infrastructure.
View eventTunnel vision
The NRLA is architecture. A minimalist formal language pervades its every construction, even down to the barely visible tunnels.
View eventWork begins
The NRLA is far more than just the Gotthard Base Tunnel, but the first exploratory boring for the NRLA project takes place at the Gotthard.
View eventConstruction begins
Although work actually began earlier, the first blasting at the Lötschberg is regarded as the official start of NRLA construction.
View eventGeology and surveying
Tunnel construction depends on scientific knowledge. Geology helps to find ways through the rock.
View eventThe costs
Funding for the project is hotly debated. The main issue is rising costs.
View eventControl in the tunnel
A new control system transmits movement commands via a digital radio network to a screen in the driver’s cab.
View eventConstruction of the Ceneri tunnel
The Ceneri Base Tunnel is the third major project forming part of the NRLA. Although somewhat overshadowed by the Gotthard and Lötschberg tunnels, it will usher in a new era for regional transport in Ticino.
View eventBreakthrough in the Gotthard
The Gotthard Base Tunnel is the centrepiece of the NRLA. The first breakthrough by a boring machine takes place in the east bore.
View eventThe Lötschberg enters operation
With the opening of the Lötschberg Base Tunnel, a first section of the NRLA becomes operational.
View eventTraversing the Piora Basin
The Piora Basin, with its sugar-grain rock, threatens to endanger construction of the Gotthard Base Tunnel.
View eventThe four-metre corridor
In order to transport the heavier loads, not only the tunnels but also other parts of the rail infrastructure need to be adapted.
View eventRock meets concrete
The Gotthard Base Tunnel is a high-tech product – and, like every tunnel, the result of much hard graft: by labourers, masons and concrete layers.
View eventTests on the Gotthard
There is a lot of technology in the new Gotthard line. Extensive tests are carried out to ensure it works properly.
View eventMind the doors
The escape doors installed in the Gotthard tunnel are the best there is. They owe their construction to the NRLA. One major innovation led to multiple minor innovations.
View eventCeneri, the third base tunnel
The NRLA is more than its three tunnels, but they are convenient media labels for the project stages. Completion of the Ceneri Base Tunnel in 2020 marks the end of the NRLA.
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