Gotthard tunnel reopens

AIROLO, Switzerland -- The Gotthard tunnel has reopened to traffic after new safety measures were installed to prevent a repeat of a fire in which 11 people died.

The tunnel, one of the key transport arteries in the Swiss Alps, was opened to cras on Friday and the first trucks will be allowedto use the route again on Saturday.

Environmental and transport organisations have lobbied against trucks being allowed to use Gotthard fearing a repeat of the head-on crash that left 11 dead in the choking smoke and intense heat.

They called on the government to ban heavy trucks travelling through the tunnel and urged that goods be shifted from the roads to rail.

But the Swiss Federal Bureau of Roads tried to reassure concerns by saying the new safety measures should limit the risks of a similar accident happening again.

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Lorries will have to travel at least 150 metres behind each other, and abide by an alternate one-way traffic system that has been introduced to bring the Gotthard in line with other major tunnels in Switzerland.

The new rules will mean that only 3,500 trucks will pass through the Gotthard each day rather than the previous figure of 5,500.

Engineering crews were making final safety checks on the 17-kilometre (10 miles) long tunnel on Friday.

The ecologist Swiss Transport Club said the Swiss authorities have rushed the tunnel's reopening compared to the French handling of its Mont Blanc tunnel fire disaster in which 39 motorists died in 1999.

The group said: "While French authorities seem to leave nothing to chance when it comes to tunnel safety, only one factor counts for Swiss transport policy -- reopening the Gotthard tunnel to heavy transport as soon as possible."

Michael Gehrken, spokesman for Swiss Federal Bureau of Roads, said: "The biggest catastrophic danger stems from fire, and fires in tunnels come most probably from head-on or rear-end collisions. These measures can eliminate these risks."

He added: "If something happens, then the infrastructure is at the best level there is."

Some of the people killed in October had reached safety but returned to their vehicles to retrieve items left behind. Others stayed in their vehicles and tried to telephone for help.

Swiss customs officials now hand out safety brochures to truck drivers, and the federal government works with Swiss cantons to make tunnel safety part of truck drivers' training.