The Simplon axis, a rail corridor through Switzerland to Italy, operated at a mere 26.3% of its regular capacity in the first half of 2026. Infrastructure challenges make reliable rail freight difficult on the route. Traffic diverts to alternative options, because companies see Simplon as an unattractive choice, Switzerland says.
A September report by the Swiss Federal Office for Transport (FOT) revealed that the Simplon axis is currently underused. Its regular capacity stands at 110 freight trains per day. In reality, however, this number is not close to being reached. The 26.3% capacity utilisation figure is a further drop from the first half of 2025, when the utilisation rate stood at 36.9%.
In terms of volume, the decline of the Simplon axis was even more stark. In H1 2026, the corridor moved around 410.000 tonnes of freight. That is 15.3% less than in the same period of the previous year.
FOT explains that infrastructure works are the main culprit for the decline of the Simplon axis. Ongoing works on the corridor between Brig and Domodossola, and onwards towards Milan and Novara, have a significant impact on capacity according to Switzerland.
Capacity restrictions
Between Brig and Domodossola, the capacity restrictions are the result of maintenance. Key projects include the ongoing renovation of the Simplon Tunnel (2025–2028, six-month restrictions each year). Between 29 May and 27 July 2026, the corridor was completely closed due to the renovation of the Kehr Tunnel. Additional renovations in the coming years will mount an extra challenge, such as the Varzo spiral tunnel and the Boldrini bridge.
On the Italian side of the route, work is ongoing to enable trains with a 4-metre profile between Domodossola and Gallarate. Switzerland has contributed to financing this project, which will likely see full and partial closures until 2029.
“Taken together, the Simplon axis is already perceived as less attractive today”, FOT tells RailFreight.com. “Companies are increasingly opting for more reliable alternative routes.” Those reliable alternative routes include the nearby Gotthard corridor. Its share of (Swiss) transalpine rail freight traffic in the first half of 2026 was 4% higher for a total share of 81.4%. The volume of freight on the Gotthard axis grew by 8.4%, or around 780,000 tonnes, compared with the first half of 2025. By contrast, the Simplon corridor carried 18.6% of the volume, which is 4% less than previously.