Transalpine traffic: railfreight falls behind
37 million t of goods were transported through the Swiss Alps last year, 4.7% less than in 2022, with road haulage declining by 1.4% and railfreight by 5.9%. 916,000 trucks and semitrailers travelled through the Alps in 2023 - 12,000 fewer than in 2022.
Nevertheless, road haulage volumes again remained well above the modal shift target of 650,000 truck journeys per year; in fact, rail’s share of total transalpine freight transport through Switzerland fell from 73.9% to 72%.
The main reason for this is the difficult economic situation (Ukraine war, energy crisis, supply chain problems) and the many construction sites on the north-south axis. Road haulage suffered less than railfreight because it has a higher proportion of domestic traffic, the Swiss federal office of transport explained. (ben)