Future Freight: Swiss Underground Mega-Project Slowly Picks Up Speed

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The story of building an underground freight system in Switzerland is one of patience and imaginative thinking. First proposed in 2013 by a public limited company of the same name, Cargo sous terrain (Underground Cargo, CST) had to wait eight years before the Swiss parliament approved new legislationExternal link for construction, which came into effect in August 2022.

This year, though, began promisingly for CST. In January it launched exploratory drilling and geological measurements to help it precisely plan the first stretch of tunnels between Zurich and Härkingen in canton Solothurn, situated 70 kilometres to the west. The company has also been holding talks with residents and communities along this route where hubs for loading and unloading goods are planned. But it still needs to secure planning permissions from the various cantons.

The Härkingen-Zurich line will be part of a proposed 500km-long network of tunnels between Geneva and St Gallen, which go down to a depth of 40 metres. Electrically powered self-driving pods riding at a constant 30km/hour and capable of transporting two pallets each will ferry goods between hubs along the network.

The entire project is estimated to cost CHF30-35 billion ($33-39 billion), to be raised entirely from the private sector. CST says it has secured CHF100 million so far for the first phase of the project. The Härkingen-Zurich line alone is expected to cost around CHF3.4 billion. The legislation explicitly excludes the federal government from any financial liability for the project.

Concerns have been raised about the price tag and the ability of the private sector to raise this huge sum – and potentially more, if it runs over budget. The information portal Heidi pointed outExternal link that the project was approved“at a time of negative interest rates. Will it withstand rates of 2% or 3%,” it wondered. CST did not reply to a SWI swissinfo request for comment.

CST wants the 70-km stretch between Härkingen and Zurich to be operational by 2031. Reaching this goal should be possible, CST recently told Swiss public radio SRF. The broadcaster notedExternal link that the Lötschberg Base Tunnel, which cuts through the Bernese Alps and is half as long, took eight years to build. But CST believes that, since it will be drilling on relatively flat land, the process should be quicker: around three-and-a-half years.

This year CST unveiled a prototype for a“vertical lifter” that will move the pods between the hubs and the tunnel. No similar device currently exists on the market, says CST.

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