Due to holiday departures, Switzerland’s Federal Roads Office (ASTRA) has predicted bottlenecks and major traffic disruptions on numerous Swiss roads. This is what you should know before you leave your house.
Public schools in a number of cantons — including Basel-City, Geneva, and Vaud — begin their summer break from June 29th, with others following throughout July.
This means that traffic will be much heavier than usual, especially on weekends, likely exacerbating the already frequent bottlenecks on Switzerland’s roads.
READ ALSO: The numbers that reveal how bad traffic on Swiss motorways has become
Where will the traffic be heaviest in the coming weeks?
According to ASTRA, “the effects of holiday travel will be felt primarily on the A2 and in the Zurich, Bern, Basel, Lucerne, and Lugano regions, around the Gotthard Tunnel, and on the San Bernardino road.”
Southbound, traffic jams and traffic restrictions will occur primarily in July and August, ASTRA said.
As for the northbound traffic, it “will be very heavy from mid-July to mid-September in particular. In good weather, a sharp increase in traffic can also be expected throughout the country on weekends.
Also, expect traffic congestion on the following roads:
Motorways
A1, Geneva (including the Bardonnex border crossing)
A1, Kirchberg – Schönbühl
A1, Härkingen – Wangen … A.
A1, Aarau-West – Birrfeld
A2/A3, Basel (including border crossings with France and Germany)
A2, Belchen Tunnel – Härkingen
A2/A14, Lucerne region
A2, Altdorf – Biasca (Gotthard road tunnel)
A2, Lugano – Chiasso (departures to Italy)
A3, Walenstadt – Reichenburg
A4, Adlikon – Winterthur-Nord
A4, Axenstrasse (Seewen – Flüelen)
A8, Interlaken – Spiez
A8, Sarnen – Lopper interchange
A9, La Veyre/Vevey – Bex-Nord
A12, Châtel-St-Denis – La Veyre/Vevey
A13, Sarganserland – Thusis-Sud
A13, Andeer – Mesocco
A15, Hegnau – Brüttisellen
A16, Courgenay – Glovelier
Border crossings on the A9 (Vallorbe, VD), the A2 (Chiasso-Brogeda, TI) and the A24 (Gaggiolo, TI)
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Main roads and customs posts:
Spiez – Kandersteg (outbound journeys)
Gampel – Goppenstein (return journeys)
Brunnen – Flüelen (Axenstrasse)
Göschenen – Andermatt
Raron – Brig
Bellinzona – LocarnoVarious main roads in the Bernese Oberland, Graubünden, and the Valais side valleys
Waiting times will also be likely at the customs posts in Au, Koblenz, St. Margrethen, and Thayngen, ASTRA said.
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And there is more
Due to SBB’s repair work on the Simplon Tunnel, BLS trains between Brig and Iselle, used to transport cars, will run every two hours instead of every 1.5 hours until July 27th.
“Therefore, waiting times may increase in both directions,” according to ASTRA.
From July 28th, car trains will again run every 1.5 hours, or even every hour, from Friday lunchtime to Sunday, from August 1st to October 19th.
The current timetable can be found here.
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A request from ASTRA…
Motorists should relieve roadside communities by remaining on the motorway in the event of traffic jams
That’s because when heavy traffic causes traffic jams and delays on major roads, drivers often switch to local roads.
However, “this undesirable phenomenon puts a strain on residents of towns along these roads and ultimately paralyses traffic in the affected regions,” ASTRA pointed out.
As a result, public transport on these roads is disrupted, and the risk of accidents increases.
“It is therefore important that travellers stay on the highway even in traffic jams, if only out of respect for the local population.”
