Gotthard: Two days to go – a fight among neighbours

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A construction site plus the local community can equal conflict. swissinfo.ch

The quiet of the valley is just a distant memory: train tracks on one side, the motorway on the other, and the Gotthard Base Tunnel construction site in the middle. swissinfo.ch

Noise protection walls line the main street of the village of Faido-Polmengo. swissinfo.ch

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It’s not just engineers and politicians who are awaiting the completion of the Gotthard Base Tunnel. Some of the residents of Faido-Polmengo are eager to see the end of the construction, but for various reasons.

The grinding of the gravel on the conveyor belt isn’t loud, but after a while it can be pretty annoying. Just like the dust and the constant noise of the machines. For people who live near the construction site, it can be a living hell.

There’s a sign in the garden of one house: “For Sale”. Just a few metres away, noise protection walls threaten to choke the house. But as an old man tells me, the situation has improved in comparison to the first few years of construction.

This is also thanks to the work of mediators who helped smooth over quarrels between locals and the construction management. Normally in a peaceful way, but sometimes in court.

Not every Faido resident was happy to get an invitation to Friday’s party, according to the old man. But he plans to go because the night-time noise was never a problem for him. He has insomnia, anyway.

Luigi Jorio, Faido, October 13, 2010