The world’s longest rail tunnel has been shut to passenger services after a derailment in Switzerland caused damage that will take months to repair.
Swiss authorities said there was “no indication” when the Gotthard Base Tunnel would reopen.
Sixteen wagons derailed and are still stuck inside, a week after the incident on 10 August.
Opened in 2016, the Gotthard rail link took 20 years to build and cost more than $12bn (£8.2bn).
National Swiss rail operator SBB chief executive Vincent Ducrot said on Wednesday that Gotthard was one of the safest tunnels in the world.
An investigation is being led by the Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (STSB) and the public prosecutor’s office of the Canton of Ticino.
SBB said that in total, around 8km (4.9 miles) of track and 20,000 concrete sleepers needed to be replaced.
The rail operator added that one side of the tunnel was unaffected and should be operating “in principle” for freight usage from 23 August, but passenger trains would not be able to use the unaffected side due to safety reasons.
Credit: bbc.com
