Gottardo (train)

Gottardo
TEE Gottardo passing through Cantù-Cermenate station, on the Milan–Chiasso line, in 1988
Overview
Service typeTrans Europ Express (TEE)
(1961–88)
EuroCity (EC)
(1988–95)
InterCity (IC)
(1995–97)
EuroNight (EN)
(1997–2002)
StatusDiscontinued
Locale Switzerland
 Italy
First service1 July 1961 (1961-07-01)
Last service15 June 2002 (2002-06-15)
Former operator(s)SBB-CFF-FFS,
Ferrovie dello Stato (FS)
Route
TerminiZurich HB
Milano Centrale (Rome after 1997)
Distance travelled293 km (182 mi)
(Zürich–Milano)
Service frequencyDaily
On-board services
Class(es)1961–88: First class only
1988–2002: First and second class
Catering facilitiesRestaurant
Technical
Rolling stockRAe TEE II-type EMU trainsets (1961–94, but reclassified as RABe EC, with two classes, in 1988/89)
Track gauge1,435 mm (4 ft 8+12 in)
Electrification15 kV AC, 16.7 Hz
(Basel/Zürich–Chiasso)
3 kV DC (Chiasso–Milano)
Route map
Route of the TEE Gottardo in summer, 1974–79

The Gottardo was an express train that, for most of its existence, linked Zurich, Switzerland, with Milan, Italy. Introduced in 1961, it was a first-class-only Trans Europ Express (TEE) until 1988, then becoming a EuroCity service and finally a EuroNight service – on a longer route, to Rome – before being discontinued in 2002. The train followed the Gotthard railway and was named for the line, using the Italian spelling for it, Ferrovia del Gottardo.