Unloved alternative traffic Uri struggles with Gotthard chaos - politicians present solutions
During traffic jams at the Gotthard tunnel, many drivers use the cantonal road through the villages of Uri as an alternative route. Two National Councillors are now proposing measures to regulate the traffic.
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- Drivers are increasingly using cantonal roads in the canton of Uri to avoid traffic jams at the Gotthard tunnel.
- National Councillors Simon Stadler and Martin Candinas are calling for temporary driving bans by the cantons and an obligation for navigation system operators to report official closures.
- The Federal Council rejects the proposals due to legal and practical concerns.
When traffic jams occur at the Gotthard tunnel, many drivers look for alternatives and use the cantonal road through the villages in the canton of Uri. This leads to considerable inconvenience for local residents.
Now something is happening in politics: National Councillor Simon Stadler and his colleague Martin Candinas have developed proposals to alleviate this situation, as reported by the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper. Stadler is calling for the cantons to be able to carry out temporary road closures independently, while Candinas wants to make navigation system operators responsible for reporting official road closures.
Simon Stadler reports numerous complaints from local residents who are suffering from traffic diversions. One resident from Gurtnellen even wears hearing protection in his house. Emergencies are also affected by the traffic, as reported by a village doctor who almost didn't make it to an operation on time.
Stadler would like the cantons to be able to independently impose driving bans on the north-south axis in the event of severe traffic congestion. However, this measure should only be implemented on an hourly basis.
Federal Council rejects proposals
Martin Candinas sees the solution in cooperation with the operators of navigation devices. These should be obliged to display official road closures in order to reduce avoidance traffic. He argues that this is technically feasible, as navigation device operators already implement other legal requirements.
The Federal Council is skeptical about the proposals and recommends rejecting them. It argues that many navigation devices already display road closures and that a legal obligation cannot be enforced abroad. In addition, other regions could also demand similar measures, which could lead to confusing regulations.
The National Council's Transport Committee supported the proposals by a narrow majority.