Freight transport
There is strong focus on sustainability and efficiency when it comes to freight transport in Switzerland. Switzerland occupies a special position in the European transport network: a large proportion of international goods transported from northern to southern Europe (and vice versa) crosses the Alps.
Freight in Switzerland is primarily handled overland, i.e. by road and rail, as part of an integrated transport network. Fine distribution is usually carried out by road, while rail offers advantages for longer distances. Around 60% of Switzerland's annual transport volume of over 25 billion tonne-kilometres is carried out by road vehicles and 40% by rail. This makes Switzerland the European leader in goods transport by rail, followed by Austria with 30%, while the EU average is just under 20%. When it comes to transalpine freight, the rail share in Switzerland is again significantly higher at more than 70%. In addition to road and rail, air freight, the Rhine river transport and oil pipelines are also important for import and export traffic.
Goods transport by road
Almost 500,000 goods vehicles are registered in Switzerland, with light vans under 3.5 tonnes dominating in terms of numbers and covering significantly more kilometres than heavy vehicles. Nevertheless, heavy goods vehicles and articulated lorries account for around 95% of transport volume. Light vans contribute little to this because of their low load weight, but carry out many more journeys. They are often used by tradespeople and are loaded with tools and spare parts. Today, three quarters of them are hybrid; fully electric vehicles are still rare. There are two reasons why comparatively clean vehicles are on the increase in Switzerland: firstly, technical advances and secondly, the performance-related heavy vehicle charge (LSVA in German), which promotes low-emission vehicles through reduced tariffs.
Goods transport by rail
More than 66 million tonnes of goods are transported on the Swiss railway network every year. Transport often takes place using containers, swap bodies or on ‘rolling roads’, where entire lorries are loaded onto trains. Rail transport is mainly used over long distances: two thirds of these are transit journeys. For cross-border rail freight, Germany is the leading country of origin and destination, followed at a considerable distance by Belgium and Italy.
In Switzerland, the share of rail freight is particularly high, especially in terms of through traffic. This is no coincidence, but the result of targeted support measures. In Switzerland, strict regulations, a ban on night-time driving (22:00-05:00) and high road charges for HGVs – known as the performance-related heavy vehicle charge (LSVA) – incentivise shifting to rail. However, financial support for rail freight from the state in the form of investment grants and compensation, as well as the modernisation of infrastructure, are also contributing factors.
Transit through the Alps
Switzerland has built several railway and road tunnels through the Alps to enable traffic to transit through the mountains, which represent a natural barrier. A significant proportion of international freight between northern and southern Europe crosses the Swiss Alps.
The volume of goods transported over the Swiss Alps by road and rail has more than doubled since 1981, the year after the Gotthard road tunnel was opened. The reason for this is the steady increase in international transport volumes.
In contrast to its neighbouring countries, Switzerland mainly uses rail for the transalpine transport of goods. It is pursuing a policy of shifting freight from road to rail in order to reduce the number of lorries in Alpine transit and thus protect the environment and the population of the mountain regions. It thus fulfils the requirements of the Swiss Alpine Initiative and the guiding principles of the Alpine Convention, the multinational agreement on the protection of the entire mountain range.
To support these goals and to cope with the constant increase in traffic, Switzerland built the New Rail Link through the Alps (NRLA), a construction project to last the ages. It has been in operation since 2020 and makes rail transit more efficient and therefore more attractive. With the base tunnels on the Lötschberg, Gotthard and Ceneri, it has created flatter and faster railway connections. At 5km, the Gotthard Base Tunnel is the longest railway tunnel in the world and is symbolic of the aim of shifting traffic from road to rail.