Last blast on Ceneri north section

AlpTransit Gotthard has executed the final blast on the north drive of the Ceneri base tunnel. At 2:50pm on 21 December, the Swiss town of Vigana was saw the final explosion on the 670m section of tunnel.

Walter Bernardi, chief construction officer for the Ceneri Base Tunnel at Alptransit Gotthard said, “Although excavation work from the north portal at Vigana and the south portal at Vezia is now complete, work on realisation of the Ceneri Base Tunnel continues at full speed. [At the end of 2011], around 40 per cent of the 39.8km-long tunnel system [had] been excavated.”

Tunnel lining began early this year as well as other fitting out work. An Alptransit Gotthard spokesman added, “From the new year, excavation of the Ceneri Base Tunnel will continue only from the intermediate heading at Sigirino. Driving work is expected to be completed in 2016, after which the railway systems will be installed. The Ceneri Base Tunnel is scheduled to open for commercial operation in December 2019.”