The Joint Network Secretariat (JNS) published its final report on the 2023 derailment inside the Gotthard Base Tunnel. The report introduces new risk control measures for rail freight wheelsets. The main changes concern entities in charge of maintenance (ECM), infrastructure managers (IM), and railway undertakings (RU). At the same time, the Swiss Office of Transport (FOT) obtained an extended deadline to appeal a court's decision to drop its unilateral new rules on the same issue.
The measures proposed by JNS include tightening wheel profile tolerance ranges, shortening ultrasonic and acoustic inspection intervals, and requiring ECMs to digitalise incident management. The goal is to establish common standards for cross-border wagon traffic and reduce operational friction stemming from rule divergence. The European Union Agency for Railways (ERA) and the main rail industry associations supported the JNS report.
However, the Swiss FOT is sticking to its stricter rules. FOT officials argue that national safety authority ranks above EU/JNS harmonisation. Europe's north-south rail corridor (Rotterdam-Genova) crosses Switzerland; as a result, divergent rules force operators to work under two standards. Industry associations stress that political mediation from the European Commission is needed to align the EU and Switzerland.
Key Takeaways:
1. JNS published new wheelset risk control measures following the 2023 Gotthard Base Tunnel derailment.
2. The changes affect ECM, IM, and RU entities.
3. The Swiss FOT secured an extended deadline to appeal the cancellation of its rules.
4. The Swiss rules are stricter; they place national safety authority above EU/JNS harmonisation.
5. Operators on the Rotterdam-Genova corridor must work under two different standards.
