GENEVA, Feb. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Gotthard Base Tunnel, the longest rail tunnel in the world that runs under the Gotthard massif in the Swiss Alps, has won the 2018 European Railway Award, Swiss public broadcaster RTS reported Wednesday.
Peter Jedelhauser of Swiss Railways and Renzo Simoni, former CEO of AlpTransit Gotthard AG, received the award on Tuesday evening in Brussels.
This prize, considered the most important in the rail industry, is awarded by the Community of European Railways (CER) and the Association of the European Rail Industry (UNIFE).
The tunnel runs for 57 km under the Alps and it took 17 years to build.
The jury took several factors into account, including the essential role that the tunnel plays for transalpine rail freight and for Europe-wide transport policy.
"In Switzerland, there is clear public support and political commitment to shifting the transport of freight from road to rail," said CER Executive Director Libor Lochman. "The Gotthard Base Tunnel is part of this plan and it is hugely valuable to the people of Europe."
Philippe Citroen, Director General of UNIFE, said that the longest railway tunnel in the world is not just an outstanding example of European engineering prowess.
"By overcoming geographical and infrastructural obstacles, the tunnel demonstrates how rail traffic can play a crucial role in ensuring an efficient and environmentally sustainable economy in Europe," he said.
The Gotthard Base Tunnel was officially opened on June 1, 2016, and it is the ninth longest tunnel in the world.
Freight trains have been running regularly through the tunnel since September 2016 and passenger trains since December the same year.
This is the third time Switzerland has won the European Railway Award after former government minister Moritz Leuenberger in 2009 and ex-CEO of Swiss Railways Benedikt Weibel in 2013.
