After the opening of Gubrist: the noise about the widening of the highway continues

These projects can benefit:

• The A1 between Wankdorf and Schönbühl BE will be expanded to eight lanes. Cost point: 253 million Swiss francs.
• The same road will be widened to six lanes between Schönbühl and Kirchberg BE. Cost item: 239 million Swiss francs.
• The Rosenbergtunnel of the A1 near St. Gallen will get a third tube. Cost point: 1244 million Swiss francs.
• The Fäsenstaub tunnel in Schaffhausen will receive a second tube. Cost point: 393 million Swiss francs.
• With a new Rhine tunnel between Birsfelden BL and Kleinhüningen BS, the eastern ring road A2 between Wiese and Hagnau will be relieved of through traffic. Cost point: 1873 million Swiss francs.
• The National Council now wants the highway between Le Vengeron GE and Nyon VD to be expanded. Cost: CHF 911 million.

In addition, the federal government has other projects on its radar that may be added later. In total, that should cost up to 11.6 billion francs.

Greens are against it

But it is unclear whether excavators will actually arrive soon. Because the Verkehrsclub (VCS) has already announced the referendum if the Council of States does not change the scope of the project. The Greens could also support the referendum. There are several reasons for this, says Green National Councilor and VCS board member Michael Töngi (56, LU). “The expansion will lead to more traffic and therefore more noise. Moreover, it will harm the climate if more highways become available.”

Töngi gives an example from his canton of Lucerne: after the opening of the Buchrain motorway, fewer people took the bus and train. And this despite the fact that the public transport connections have been expanded. “This shows that the expansion creates additional incentives to use the climate-damaging car.” A motorway extension is not necessary for Töngi. “In recent years, traffic on the highways has not increased.”

Rising costs due to traffic jams

SVP State Councilor Sandra Sollberger (49, BL) supports the expansion of the highway. “Every day more and more people are stuck in traffic.” She runs her own painting business. “We are 14 people and travel in five cars each. If each car is stuck in traffic jams for only ten to twenty minutes a day, the costs will be exorbitantly high.”

According to Sollberger, traffic on the highways has increased. “Anyone who is on the street can see that. More and more people are coming to Switzerland, they are mobile and on the road.”

Sollberger does not believe that more highways will weaken public transport. “I can’t take the paint kettles on the train and to the customers.” But it is clear to her that both are needed. “Public transport is also needed to cope with the increasing number of commuters.”

Funds remain blocked for roads

Even if the referendum passes before the people, the Greens have a problem: only the relevant projects will be blocked. The money remains in the pot and is blocked for road construction.

Grünen-Töngi wants to invest the money more in the agglomerations. “If the referendum goes through, you could use more money for public transport or bike paths instead.” That should be a big discussion too.

Construction sites along highways could also be located elsewhere. The Federal Council wants to expand the A1 motorway to at least six lanes on the Bern-Zurich and Lausanne-Geneva sections. And the Federal Council has already proposed projects for the period around 2040.