Traveling around Europe by train is about to get a whole lot faster, thanks to the opening of Switzerland's Gotthard Base Tunnel. After 17 years of construction and $12 billion in costs, the 'GBT' will be the world's longest and deepest railway tunnel ever, running through the rocky Alps at depths that reach 7,500 feet.
The 35.4-mile tunnel, which opens on June 1 and travels at a speed of 155 miles per hour, has been called a "godsend for Europe" by EU transport commissioner Violeta Bulc. With the new high-speed route—which offers a speedy alternative to flying—travelers will be able to journey from Zurich to Milan in two and a half hours—a welcome improvement from the four-plus hours it currently takes. It will also connect Rotterdam, Holland and Antwerp, Belgium with Adriatic ports, reducing air pollution along trade routes and decreasing the number of trucks on the roads.
Courtesy AlpTransit Gotthard Ltd.
The tunnel has enough copper cable to reach from New York City to San Antonio.
As NBC reports, the tunnel required the excavation of roughly 31 million tons of rock—which, for scale, is enough to build five Giza pyramids. When it opens in just over a week, the GBT will take the title of 'world's longest train tunnel' from Japan's Seikan Tunnel, which runs for roughly 33.5 miles. The Channel Tunnel, connecting England to France, will drop down to the third longest.
The first group to travel through the tunnel on June 1 will be 1,000 "representatives of the Swiss population," according to a Gotthard news release. In attendance will be the Federal Council, heads of state and government from neighboring countries—German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande, and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi—and transport ministers of countries along the Rotterdam-Genoa freight corridor. About 300 members of the media will also attend. After the inaugural ride, public festivals will be held at both ends of the tunnel at Erstfeld/Rynächt and Pollegio/Biasca train stations, and throughout June, there will also be celebrations at Swiss stations in Aarau, Biel, Berne, Geneva, Winterthur, and Zurich. Regular service through the GBT is scheduled to begin in December 2016.
