Albula Tunnel celebrates opening
The Rhaetian Railway has officially opened the new Albula Tunnel. The 5860-meter long tunnel replaces the old 1903 tunnel. Over 300 guests attended the celebrations.
The Rhaetian Railway(RhB) celebrated the official opening of the new Albula Tunnel on 8 June. The event was attended by over 300 invited guests from the railway industry, politics, business and tourism, the RhB reported in a press release. The guest of honour was Albert Rösti, Head of the Federal Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications. The opening ceremony was complemented by a public event on 9 June at the north and south portals in Preda and Spinas.
The 5860 metre long new Albula Tunnel will replace the old connection between Preda and Spinas, which was opened in 1903. The old tunnel is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is to be converted into a safety tunnel in the future. Twelve cross-connections have been created between the two tunnels for this purpose.
In 2010, RhB decided in favour of building a new tunnel instead of repairing the old one after a thorough examination. “The decisive arguments in favour were the relatively low cost difference, hardly any timetable-relevant restrictions during the construction phase and the significantly higher safety level of a new facility,” according to a RhB brochure on the tunnel project. High quality and sustainability are cited as further advantages in favour of the new construction. A total of CHF 407 million was invested in the tunnel, which took ten years to complete. The first scheduled train through the new tunnel is due to run on 12 June.