Rolling Highway Trans-Alpine Freight Service to End in 2025

The Rolling Highway service transporting trucks through the Alps will end in December 2025, as RAlpin faces rising losses and operational disruptions on the German rail network. This is reported by the railway transport news portal Railway Supply.

RAlpin confirmed the decision on May 5, stating that although demand remains high and capacity reached 80%, ongoing engineering works forced the cancellation of around 10% of trains in 2024.

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These disruptions resulted in a loss of approximately $2.42 million, based on an estimated exchange rate. In early 2025, construction further reduced train availability by 20% compared to the same time in 2024.

Rolling Highway service struggles despite customer demand

RAlpin, a joint venture between BLS, Hupac, and SBB, has operated the Rolling Highway route between Freiburg and Novara since 2001. The service carried 72,000 trucks in 2024 but suffered from infrastructure issues in Germany.

While the Swiss government continues to provide financial support, authorities have decided to phase out this transitional service sooner than planned, shifting focus toward more efficient intermodal transport.

NEAT tunnels reshape Alpine freight logistics

Originally launched in the 1960s, the Rolling Highway was designed to move road freight to rail, reducing truck traffic across the Alps. Drivers traveled in sleeper cars while their vehicles rode on low wagons.

The long-term goal was always the development of NEAT — a modern tunnel network that includes the Lötschberg, Gotthard, and Ceneri base tunnels. These corridors now enable high-capacity, unaccompanied freight movement.

In 2023, Switzerland’s parliament extended RoLa funding one last time until 2028. However, due to worsening conditions and high costs, RAlpin now plans to end operations by year-end, three years earlier than scheduled.

As Switzerland invests in future-ready freight solutions, unaccompanied combined transport will replace the Rolling Highway model with faster, more reliable, and scalable alternatives.

Source, photo: www.railwaygazette.com

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