The Swiss government is currently in the process of passing some new legislation that will enable a company called Cargo Sous Terrain to begin construction of the world’s first underground automatic transport system. If all goes according to plan, by 2031 cargo will be moving through the first 70-kilometre tunnel with 10 intermediate stations equipped with elevators to take cargo from and to the surface.
Cargo Sous Terrain’s idea is to create a fully automatic underground freight transport system that can carry up to 40 percent of all freight traffic. And unlike other similar projects, such as Hyperloop-TT Hyperport, Cargo Sous Terrain’s project looks less technologically complex and more feasible.
The tunnel of the transportation system will have a diameter of 6 meters. On its flat floor there will be three lanes along which the transport capsules will move at 30 kilometers per hour and can take on board one or two standard pallets with cargo. Some of the pods will be equipped with a refrigerator and will be used to deliver fresh produce. Electric motors, refrigeration units and other equipment will be powered wirelessly by induction lines laid beneath the surface of the roadway.
The pods will be loaded and unloaded at ground logistics stations, and lowered into the tunnels with elevators. The outermost lanes will be unidirectional and primary, while the center lane will be used in either direction in case of a traffic jam threat or to accommodate capsules waiting for the elevator to reach the surface.
Preliminary estimates compiled by Cargo Sous Terrain say it would cost about three billion U.S. dollars to build the first section connecting Zurich and Herkingen. The company has now raised some of the necessary funding and received permission from the Swiss government to begin design work, which includes choosing the location of the first 10 stations of the transportation system.
When completed, the transportation system will stretch about 500 kilometers from Geneva to St. Gallen, with short secondary sections to Basel, Lucerne and Thun.
In addition to moving a significant amount of freight traffic underground, the Cargo Sous Terrain transport system is designed to minimize the impact on the environment and local residents. The system will be virtually invisible to ordinary people, the system will make almost no noise, and it will run primarily on energy from renewable sources. Cargo Sous Terrain has no plans for passenger transportation, which has greatly simplified many things legally.
