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20 years of the Vereina tunnel

On November 19, 1999, after eight years of construction, the Vereina Tunnel opened in eastern Switzerland.

Connecting the Landquart – Davos Platz and the Bever – Scuol-Tarasp lines, the tunnel is 19 kilometres long and the journey through takes 18 minutes.

In 20 years, it has brought various improvements to locals, tourists, and businesses.

However, its construction had initially been opposed by some as it was feared that the tunnel would lead to increased road traffic and a decline in the Romansh language.

The tunnel was built to improve all-weather transport links in the eastern part of Canton Graubünden, as the Flüela Pass is prone to heavy snowfall and avalanches in the winter months.

The hourly regional train service between Scuol-Tarasp and Chur is also complemented by freight trains and car shuttle trains transporting road vehicles.

In 2019, an estimated 500,000 will travel through the largely single-track tunnel. The planners had assumed a volume of 400,000 vehicles a year. The increased use of the tunnel has prompted for a boost in investments on the part of the Rhaetian Railways.

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SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR

SWI swissinfo.ch - a branch of Swiss Broadcasting Corporation SRG SSR