THE Swiss Federal Office for Transport (FOT) has issued a one-year extension to the deadline to comply with new regulations governing the suitability of freight wagons operated in Switzerland as major companies gear up to challenge the rules in court.

Under the changes confirmed by FOT in an official correspondence, wagon fleet owners and maintenance providers now have until December 31 2026 to meet the new requirements for minimum wheel diameters, systematic and more frequent maintenance and optimised inspection of wagons used on the Swiss network.

The regulations were announced by FOT on September 11 and were introduced in response to the recommendations of a report issued by the independent Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (Sust) on June 2 into the derailment of a freight train in the Gotthard Base Tunnel on August 10 2023, which resulted in major disruption to trans-Alpine rail freight traffic.

Supporters of the new rules, including Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), say they will substantially reduce the risk of accidents, pointing out that the factors that caused the Gotthard derailment can occur again and that regulation is the only way to address these systemic issues.

Traffic meltdown

However, the announcement prompted a strong response from wagon fleet owning groups, with the International Union of Wagon Keepers (UIP) stating that they challenge “the integrity of the European Union single market” and could result in a “meltdown in European rail freight traffic.”

While UIP has welcomed the extension as a reflection of the scale of the task faced by the freight sector, it says the underlying complexity of the Swiss decision remains unchanged, presenting substantial challenges for Europe’s wagon fleet owners and maintainers.

It says that major companies are preparing to challenge the ruling before competent courts, stating that that the unilateral actions of Switzerland contradict the Principle of Interoperability under the EU-Switzerland Land Transport Agreement. They are also in conflict with the work of the Joint Secretariat (JNS) of the European Union Agency for Railways (ERA), which is developing updated recommendations in response to the Gotthard Base Tunnel accident, which are expected to be announced by the end of the year.

“By keeping its unilateral national measures on the table, Switzerland is jumping to conclusions without respecting the pan-European processes already in place and, without the necessary multilateral technical debate,” UIP says.

UIP represents a fleet of a quarter of a million, which is around half of Europe’s total wagon fleet. And while it says wagon fleet owners have adapted to ensure only 20% of the fleet is affected by the FOT ruling, it says 46,000 wagons is still substantial.

“The requirement that all inspections be carried out in stationary workshops and outside regular maintenance intervals will reduce wagon availability, risk disrupting industrial supply chains, and will continue to add cost, especially along Europe’s vital Alpine corridors,” UIP says.

“With most of the freight transport through Switzerland being international transit traffic, the decision impacts the ability of goods to move sustainably by rail to and from Europe’s largest seaports and key industrial zones in Italy, Germany, Scandinavia and Switzerland.”