Saint Gotthard Tunnel

Technical benefits

• The Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise switches are critical to the operation of the Gotthard Base Tunnel. For 8 years now, the extremely resilient and reliable network has consistently powered the Gotthard Base Tunnel’s web of IoT devices and services such as door monitoring, sensors, cameras, ventilation and drainage infrastructure, communications, and control and monitoring systems, all of which send and/or receive real-time data. Nothing in the Gotthard Base Tunnel works without Alcatel-Lucent Enterprise switches.
• The almost 1000 OmniSwitch 6855 switches that make up the industrial-grade hardened network connect all of the tunnel’s 70,000 data points successfully in a very harsh and difficult operational environment.

Financial benefits

• The tunnel’s extreme environment (i.e. high temperatures and humidity, remote location, metal dust from trains, etc.) would easily damage normal switches. The rugged components that make up the network are built to last, employing a passive cooling mechanism that ensures low maintenance needs and equipment longevity, which leads to lower costs.

User experience benefits

• The specialized hardened network enables the Gotthard Base Tunnel to take IoT where standard networking cannot, guaranteeing the level of service required for the longest, safest and best connected tunnel in the world, which transports 9,000 passengers every day in safety and comfort.