Swiss state-owned rail freight operator SBB Cargo will abandon eight combined transport terminals in order to reduce expenses. One of these facilities, in Cadenazzo, will move under the control of Swiss Post from 2026, ensuring continuity of operations.
The terminal, located right before the southern entrance of the Gotthard Base Tunnel, was inaugurated in 2012 and is used for the transshipment from road to rail, including semi-trailers. Swiss Post already runs four trains from the terminal every week, and it will go up to five in December, as Swiss media RSI wrote. The facility will also remain open to third parties as well.
SBB Cargo’s new strategy – the closure of eight combined transport terminals – will entail the layoff of 65 people, 40 of which will be in the Ticino area. Other than Cadenazzo, SBB Cargo will leave the intermodal hubs in Oensingen, Basel, Gossau, Widnau, Renens, St. Triphon, and Lugano. The future for the rest of these locations is not yet known, but their closure would be a significant blow for trans-Alpine combined transport.