RAlpin AG is domiciled in Olten and operates the Rolling Highway through the Swiss Alps. Every year it transfers around 100,000 trucks from road to rail, thus making an important contribution to Switzerland's modal shift policy.

For more than a decade RAlpin has been committed to providing a cornerstone of the Swiss Confederation's modal shift policy: the intelligent combination of road and rail, a reduction in carbon emissions to safeguard sensitive Alpine regions, and the provision of transit solutions for freight traffic. All this in order to enhance Switzerland's attractiveness vis-a-vis its own citizens and transport economy and to contribute to the country's modal shift policy.

Share holders of RAlpin are BLS AG, Hupac SA and SBB AG.

Complete trucks (articulated and non-articulated trucks and trailers) are driven onto trains by their drivers at special terminals; the drivers travel in an accompanying passenger coach. RAlpin has been operating a Rolling Highway between Freiburg im Breisgau and Novara since 2001. The Rolling Highway is a key part of Switzerland's transit traffic policy and represents an economical and environmentally responsible alternative for transiting Switzerland and its Alps. It offers safe and cost-effective travel during the day and night.

WHAT BENEFIT IS THE ROLLING HIGHWAY?

The Rolling Highway provides the ideal alternative to unaccompanied combined transport (UCT) in situations where the freight, the vehicle fleet or the freight company's dispatching situation demands it. Our solutions are designed to maximise the benefits for our customers: by synchronising journey times with drivers' statutory rest periods, drivers are able to take to the wheels of their trucks the moment they arrive at the destination terminal. Moreover, the Rolling Highway means freight can transit the Alps despite Switzerland's ban on commercial vehicle movements at night and on Sundays – around the clock, throughout the year and in both directions. A further advantage is that the Freiburg i. Br. – Novara relation is free from time-consuming customs procedures at the Swiss borders for vehicles transiting through Switzerland from an EU country to an EU country.

The Rolling Highway is particularly suited to time-critical shipments, just-in-time deliveries and sensitive or valuable freight that requires continuous accompaniment. We transport trucks carrying all kinds of goods, chemical products, high-tech components, spare parts, perishable foodstuffs and airfreight. Over the last 20 years, more than 1.7 million trucks and their drivers have benefited from these advantages.

All the freight company has to think about is the planning and dispatching. Unlike unaccompanied combined transport, no logistical changes or investments are necessary. The Rolling Highway can accept virtually any truck approved for European roads.