Bad weather Transport Director does not expect a change in behavior due to A13
The outgoing Director of the Federal Office of Transport, Peter Füglistaler, does not expect tourists to switch to rail travel following the closure of the A13. People do not immediately become rail travelers, Füglistaler said on Tuesday in the SRF daily interview.
25.06.2024, 13:50
SDA
"Mobility is behavior, that's people," Füglistaler continued. It had already been established during previous closures that freight traffic is very flexible. The situation is different for tourists who come in the summer. According to the Director of the Federal Office of Transport (FOT), who is stepping down at the end of July after 14 years in office, he does not expect the latter to change their habits, but simply to leave two hours earlier by car and then arrive two hours later in the south.
A certain process is needed to change habits in the area of mobility - and habits will not change within a week, said Füglistaler, referring to the summer vacation traffic on the Gotthard heading south, which is about to begin.
However, he believes that "SBB will certainly make a good proposal" regarding additional passenger trains for those who do want to switch to rail transport. There will certainly be options, albeit limited ones.
At a media conference in Bern on Tuesday morning, Transport Minister Albert Rösti held out the prospect of additional rail connections to cope with long-distance travel through Switzerland in the summer. During the storm last Friday evening, the River Moesa partially tore away a section of the A13 national road near Lostallo GR. Since then, the San Bernardino route has been closed. One lane of the A13 should be open again from July.
