Rail traffic A year ago, a freight train derailed in the Gotthard Base Tunnel

Saturday (tomorrow) marks the anniversary of the devastating derailment of a freight train in the Gotthard Base Tunnel. The accident caused massive damage to the infrastructure in the tunnel. Passenger traffic is still impaired today.

The freight train derailed in the west tunnel of the Gotthard Base Tunnel in the early afternoon of August 10, 2023 while traveling from Chiasso TI to Basel. According to the interim report by the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (Sust), a broken wheel disk was responsible for the accident.

The first freight train was only able to pass through the base tunnel again around two weeks later, and the first passenger train after around one and a half months. After the accident, seven kilometers of track had to be completely renewed, two high-speed switches and a track change gate as well as 20,000 sleeper blocks were replaced.

The material damage is estimated at around 150 million Swiss francs. The reopening of the tunnel on September 2 is still realistic, as the SBB said on request.