Sending Italian wine to the Netherlands or German washing machines to Greece  often means a long slow journey along narrow alpine valleys, through tunnels and over passes.

More and more goods cross the Alps every year and the number of heavy lorries on alpine transit routes has increased dramatically. Many people have died in road and tunnel accidents and the inhabitants of the Alps feel that their wonderfulenvironment is in danger.

In a national referendum held in 1994 the Swiss people voted to put all freightonto railways. A year later the government started a project called AlpTransit -with the aim of building a faster north-south rail route beneath the Alps.

The entire railway line will stay at the same altitude – about 500 meters above sea level. Trains will be able to reach speeds of up to 250 km an hour and reduce the travel time between Zurich and Milan from four hours to two and a half . That would make the journeyeven faster than flying.

The construction of two new railway sections is planned:

• The Gotthard axis will have three new tunnels. The original 15 km long  Gotthard tunnel, which was completed in 1881, will bereplaced by the world’s longest tunnel with a length of 57 km.
• The Lötschberg Axis is being built further in the west and has  a 34 km long base tunnel that will be completed sometime in 2007.