June 2007 - Swiss government wants ACE to transfer traffic from road to rail

On 8 June 2007, the Federal Council - the Swiss government - adopted a dispatch on the Freight Traffic Transfer Act, which is addressed to the two chambers of the Swiss parliament.

Swiss government wants ACE to transfer goods from road to rail

On 8 June 2007, the Federal Council – the Swiss government – adopted a dispatch on the Freight Traffic Transfer Act, which is addressed to the two chambers of the Swiss parliament. The Freight Traffic Transfer Act is to replace the Traffic Transfer Act, which is only valid until 2010. The Federal Council continues to adhere to the transfer goal of an annual 650,000 lorry trips across the Swiss Alps. It is, however, abandoning its current goal of reaching this figure by 2009. The reduction is to be achieved “as quickly as possible”. As an intermediate goal, less than one million lorries are to cross the Alps in 2011. In order to continue to financially support rail freight traffic, a financial framework of 1.6 billion Swiss Francs is planned for 2011-2018.

In order to progress the transfer of goods from road to rail, an Alpine Crossing Exchange is to be introduced. The Freight Traffic Transfer Act is to create a legal basis for this transfer. The Alpine Crossing Exchange was welcomed in the consultation preceding the Federal Council’s dispatch and is to be introduced in collaboration with the EU and neighbouring countries.

For the Alpine Initiative, which originated the Swiss constitution’s demand to transfer freight traffic from road to rail, the proposal of the Federal Council is unconstitutional, disheartening and unimaginative. While the constitution clearly stipulates that the responsibility lies with the Federal Council, the latter is passing responsibility for this on to parliament. The constitution’s timescales are not being not respected either. Moreover, with the exception of the Alpine Crossing Exchange, the Federal Council has not named a single new transfer instrument that is effective in the short term. This is why the Alpine Initiative is going to submit a petition for review to the Swiss parliament.