by The government of the canton of Ticino is strongly opposed to tolls for the Gotthard road tunnel, reported RTS this week. Gotthard Tunnel © Stefano Ember | Dreamstime.comThe idea of charging a toll for the highly congested Gotthard tunnel linking Ticino, which lies south of the Alps, to the rest of Switzerland, has been discussed for some time. In a public poll run at the end of June 2023, 69% of those surveyed said they believed a toll was needed, compared to 28% who were opposed to one. However, this week, the cantonal government of Ticino wrote a letter to the Federal Council arguing that a toll would not reduce the volume of traffic. In addition, it said that a toll would penalise Switzerland’s only canton lying entirely south of the Alps and violate the principle of cantonal
Topics:
Investec considers the following as important: Automotive, Business & Economy, Editor's Choice
This could be interesting, too:
Investec writes Switzerland ranked second in digital competitiveness
Investec writes Swiss wages set to rise in 2025
Investec writes Federal Council hopes to boost savings with pension change
Investec writes Switzerland’s cross border workers reach record level
The government of the canton of Ticino is strongly opposed to tolls for the Gotthard road tunnel, reported RTS this week.
The idea of charging a toll for the highly congested Gotthard tunnel linking Ticino, which lies south of the Alps, to the rest of Switzerland, has been discussed for some time. In a public poll run at the end of June 2023, 69% of those surveyed said they believed a toll was needed, compared to 28% who were opposed to one.
However, this week, the cantonal government of Ticino wrote a letter to the Federal Council arguing that a toll would not reduce the volume of traffic. In addition, it said that a toll would penalise Switzerland’s only canton lying entirely south of the Alps and violate the principle of cantonal equality. Furthermore, a toll would create economic, social and cultural problems for the canton.
Citing experience in Italy, the cantonal executive also said that tolls clog up alternative routes with vehicles. A toll on the Gotthard tunnel would send vehicles to San Bernardino (GR) and Grand Saint-Bernard (VS) tunnels, it said. Although, somewhat confusingly, the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel already charges a toll.
The one thing nearly everyone agrees on is that the queues of traffic either side of the tunnel during peak holiday seasons are long.
More on this:
RTS article (in French) – Take a 5 minute French test now
For more stories like this on Switzerland follow us on Facebook and Twitter.