100 Years of the Lötschberg Railway - Reportage from Switzerland and Italy (Swiss Press Audio 2014, by Raniero Fratini) - Swiss Press Award

RSI - Rete Uno

Raniero Fratini

BLS stands for Bern-Lötschberg-Simplon. With a turnover of over 900 million francs and nearly 3,000 employees, BLS is Switzerland's second-largest transport company, after the SBB. It operates a fleet of lake cruisers, several regional bus lines, and rail connections in seven cantons. But as its name suggests—BLS—the heart of the company is the Lötschberg line, which connects the cantons of Bern and Valais, Switzerland and Italy. Inaugurated in 1913, following the construction of the Lötschberg tunnel, the Lötschberg line celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. BLS, however, has not limited itself to the usual celebrations; it has also seized the opportunity of the anniversary to launch new development proposals. For example, a new hourly connection between Bern and Domodossola. The report also addresses the impact of the construction of the railway tunnel on the Alpine region in the early 1900s. Speakers include, in order: Bernard Guillelmon, Director General of the BLS; Doris Leuthard (Minister of Transport); Father Graziano Tassello, of the CSERPE in Basel; Thomas Antonietti; Valais ethnologist Mariano Cattrini, Mayor of Domodossola (and several others).