Implenia/Frutiger wins contract for Gotthard road tunnel main northern section

The works for the 7.9km section (Lot 241), extending up to the lot boundary in the middle of the tunnel, are valued at CHF467m (US$491m). Construction will start this year and is scheduled for completion in 2029.

The main element of the work is a 7.3km-long, 12.3m diameter tunnel to be excavated by a TBM with tubing. The tunnel connects to a 160m-long stretch at the start, which will be excavated conventionally.

The contract, awarded by the Swiss Federal Roads Office (FEDRO), also includes 430m of conventional tunnel through the northern disturbance zone, which will be excavated from the 4km-long northern access tunnel that is currently under construction. The TBM will later be pulled through this section of the disturbance zone. Its cutterhead will be changed and it will then complete the remaining tunnelling through to the lot boundary.

The joint venture will also undertake a highly complex excavation for two underground ventilation centres, as well as creating an underground concrete plant and production halls for tubing rings and service ducts in former military caverns.

The new Gotthard tunnel runs 70m to the east of the existing road tunnel which opened in 1980 and carries traffic in both directions. Once the new tunnel is completed, the older tunnel will be refurbished and each tunnel will have a single lane of traffic.