In the past, the safety systems of the Leissigen tunnel have been renovated and improved in various projects. In 2014, for example, the operating and safety systems were upgraded in several stages.
In recent years, the focus lied on optimising the situation with respect to escape routes: the Leissigen tunnel has been equipped with a safety gallery. Previously, the only escape apart from the tunnel portals was via a gallery that runs from the operating centre in the middle of the tunnel to the village of Leissigen. In accordance with the latest safety requirements, however, additional escape options had to be created. Therefore, a safety gallery had been constructed from 2018 to 2023 that leads alongside the tunnel on the mountain side at a distance of around 25 metres from the tunnel. Cross-connections lead from the main tunnel tube to the safety gallery at intervals of 250 metres.
The safety gallery was drilled from east to west. The breakthrough of the safety gallery took place in May 2020, followed by the cross-connections in summer 2020. Work then began on the inside of the gallery. The gallery was put into service in September 2023.
The Leissigen tunnel itself will undergo renovation as part of the Spiez – Interlaken-West maintenance project, starting not before 2031.
Details
- Handover of the Leissigen tunnel to traffic: 23 June 1994
- Length: 2,100 metres
- Duration of construction of the emergency gallery: 2018 to 2023
- Costs for construction of the emergency gallery: Approx. 42 million Swiss francs