Northern Portal of the Lötschberg-Summit Tunnel

Here you find the entrance to the Lötschberg tunnel, which is 14'612 m long. The construction begun on 1st November 1906. The period until the opening was associated with many hardships for the workers and overshadowed by tragic accidents. One of the accidents occurred under the Gastern valley: on 23 July 1908, the miners broke into a deep fissure at kilometer 2,497. A blasting caused a water and sediment slump, resulting in the death of 25 Italian workers, only 3 workers survived with great luck. The construction was continued in 1909 after thorough investigations. The mining gallery of misfortune was walled up and the Gasterntal has been bypassed with a big loop. With the construction of three curves resulted consequently in a tunnel which was longer than originally planned. On 31st  March 1911 followed the breakthrough of the Lötschberg. After the further expansion, the first electric railway drove on the 3rd June 1913 through the tunnel. The opening of the tunnel was a milestone: the Bern area received the first time direct connection to the south.