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Concept
Gotthard Tunnel
Summary
The Gotthard Tunnel (Gotthardtunnel, Galleria del San Gottardo) is a railway tunnel that forms the summit of the Gotthard Railway in Switzerland. It connects Göschenen with Airolo and was the first tunnel through the Saint-Gotthard Massif in order to bypass the St Gotthard Pass. It was built as single bore tunnel accommodating a standard gauge double-track railway throughout. When opened in 1882, the Gotthard Tunnel was the longest tunnel in the world.
The tunnel rises from the northern portal at Göschenen () and the highest point () is reached after approximately . After two more kilometers, the border between the cantons of Uri and Ticino is passed; after another , the tunnel ends at the southern portal near to Airolo (). The trip takes about seven to eight minutes by train. Services are operated by the Swiss Federal Railways.
The origins of the Gotthard Tunnel and its construction can be traced back to the widely-felt desire to improve interconnectivity between the European nations. Even prior to the scheme's commencement, such a tunnel had been envisioned as a necessary but singular element of a wider railway network that would connect the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea together, opening up new commercial opportunities by facilitating the movement of goods and people between the ports of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany with those of Northern Italy, along with many of the major inland cities lying in between. To achieve this, it was necessary for the line to traverse the Alps around its most central point. Of all possible routes, Gotthard had historically been a favoured one for the passage of travellers by foot or packhorse.
But several other locations where the tunnel through the alps was to be constructed were also discussed. in 1838 Zanino Volta of Como approached St.Gallen and Grisons with plans of a tunnel through the Splügen. In the 1840s, the two cantons then joined forces with the Ticino for a tunnel through the Lukmanier.
Official source
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