Why Switzerland Dug 57 Kilometers Through the Alps

The Gotthard Base Tunnel is famous for its length. Its deeper purpose is to change the climb that trains experience through the Alps. We follow the physics of heavy trains, the difference between an older mountain crossing and a base tunnel, and why the surrounding network and timetable still determine what the new route can achieve. 00:00 A hidden change to the route 00:25 Trains do not travel on flat maps 00:53 The energy cost of climbing 01:23 Why descending is not a complete refund 01:46 The older crossing and the base tunnel 02:15 Two tubes beneath the Alps 03:10 Building through changing ground 03:37 Systems and safety below ground 04:30 One link in a larger corridor 05:24 Capacity is a timetable problem 06:43 The connections freight still needs 07:07 Changing the route for generations Sources: Swiss Federal Office of Transport — NRLA https://www.bav.admin.ch/en/nrla-new-... Swiss Federal Office of Transport — New routes through Europe https://www.bav.admin.ch/dam/bav/en/d... SBB — Safety in the NRLA tunnels https://company.sbb.ch/content/dam/in... VISUAL CREDITS 20141120 gotthard-basistunnel05-wiki — Hannes Ortlieb (Diskussion) [CC BY-SA 3.0 de] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... ZURICH to MILAN in 1st Class | This Train Crosses the Alps Through a 57km Tunnel — Worldwide P. [CC BY 3.0]    • ZURICH to MILAN in 1st Class | This Train ...   Trainspotting the GotthardBahn in 2021 / Trainspotting na GotthardBahn w 2021r . — LHSBoy Productions [CC BY 3.0]    • Trainspotting the GotthardBahn in 2021 / T...   Amsteg - GBT Access Tunnel (30793268472) — Kecko [CC BY 2.0] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... Gothard Basistunnel erstfeld — Tristan Liardon [CC BY-SA 3.0] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... CH Gotthard Basistunnel Amsteg 1 — Image taken by Daniel Schwen on August 28th 2004. [CC BY-SA 2.5] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... 20141120 gotthard-basistunnel10-wikipedia-hannes-ortlieb — Hannes Ortlieb (Diskussion) [CC BY-SA 3.0 de] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... Amsteg - GBT Access Tunnel (30608126860) — Kecko [CC BY 2.0] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... Bodio - GBT Bypass tunnel (29942226613) — Kecko [CC BY 2.0] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... Gotthard tunnel (new) cutting shield sculpture (36285956974) — James Petts from London, England [CC BY-SA 2.0] https://commons.wikimedia.org/?curid=... Licenses: CC BY-SA 3.0 de: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... CC BY 3.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... CC BY 2.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... CC BY-SA 3.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... CC BY-SA 2.5: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... CC BY-SA 2.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/... Clips: silent excerpts, cropped/resized. Photos: cropped with camera movement; some annotated. Adapted CC BY-SA visuals retain their source licenses. No endorsement implied. Original explanations, diagrams and procedural music: Map Motive.