Lötschberg Base Tunnel inaugurated

Second big rail line inauguration in Central Europe within a week - after the TGV Est high speed line in France last weekend, we now have a new tunnel through the Alps:

Today, the new Lötschberg Base Tunnel - first part of the NRLA (New Railway Link through the Alps) has been officially inaugurated. At 34.5 kilometers of length, it is currently the third longest tunnel in the world (and the longest non-underwater tunnel).

Freight trains will start using the tunnel within the next days, but passenger operations will only start in August (the schedule will even only be adjusted with the December timetable change).

Links:

BLS AlpTransit Press Release
Speech by Swiss Transport Minister Moritz Leuenberger: “We have moved a mountain.”

Posted in: Uncategorized | June 15, 2007 2:29 pm

1 Comment »

Betuweroute freight rail line to be inaugurated | TrainBlog, on June 15, 2007 @ 10:11 pm

[…] It’s an exiting time for railroading in Central Europe - after the TGV Est and the Lötschberg Base Tunnel, the Dutch Betuweroute (official site) freight rail line between Rotterdam and Germany will be the third infrastructure project to open for service this month. This 160 km long, double track freight corridor is set to improve capacity between the Dutch harbor cities and mainland Europe. […]