Surely the argument for rail-based freight has been won?

It's a sad irony that Switzerland, where the Gotthard tunnel lies, has made more progress than any other European country towards a rail-based transport policy.

After a series of referendums on the issue, it has now enshrined in its constitution the ultimate goal of transporting all freight by rail.

New tunnels

The construction of two major trans-Alpine rail tunnels - a 57km-long tunnel under the Gotthard road pass and the 35km-long Loetschberg tunnel - is under way as are improvements to its already outstanding rail network.

The measures are to be funded partly from an increase in income and fuel taxes but largely from a kilometre tax imposed on all heavy goods vehicles.

An poll of unionised drivers found that more than 60% had fallen asleep at the wheel within the past three months

The policy has been hailed by the European Union, who held it up as best practice in a recently published White Paper on transport.

France and Italy also plan a high-speed trans-Alpine rail link between Lyon and Turin.

That is intended to cut the amount of road freight through the Mont Blanc tunnel - scene of another horrific fire - which, after many delays, is due to open by the end of this year.

On paper rail wins over road with apparent ease.

The chances of being killed travelling by road are 35 times higher than when travelling by rail.

The European Commission calculates that every tonne transported on a kilometre of road has external costs - taking in pollution, accidents, infrastructure etc - of 0.12 euros while on rail the cost is 0.051 euros.

But in practice, the shift from road to rail is not taking place.

Just-in-time delivery

The closure of the Mont Blanc tunnel did not increase traffic on the nearby Mont Cenis rail link. Instead trucks headed for other road tunnels, including the Gotthard Tunnel - with disastrous consequences.

Thirty-nine died in the Mont Blanc tunnel fire

"The manufacturing industry's dependence on the "just-in-time" system means that the road system needs to be maintained," says Mac Urata, secretary of the inland transport section of the International Transport Federation (ITF).

Just one day after the Gotthard disaster, Italian hauliers were lobbying to be allowed in greater numbers through Austria's Brenner tunnel, warning their government that the country risked economic paralysis if they could not keep driving.

The fuel protests last summer showed just how quickly that can happen.

Road transport provides industry with "flexibility, dependability and traceability" says Frazer Goodwin, Policy Officer at the European Federation for Transport and the Environment.

But in the Alps the price paid for that is "a very high impact on the environment and on the population," he says.

Guy Willis of the International Road Transport Union which represents the haulage industry accepts that rail transportation will be the long-term solution to trans-Alpine freight.

But, he says, "the only government which has put its money where its mouth is is Switzerland".

And it will be over a decade before both Swiss rail tunnels will be in operation. Other countries have not even begun digging.

Until then, he argues, a safe road network - including two-tube tunnels - will be essential to cope with the 38% growth in demand for goods transportation which the European Commission has predicted up until 2010.

'Cowboy' operators

But safety is not a priority for many of the haulage operators who, says Mr Goodwin, are "cowboys", providing their service at bargain basement prices by cutting corners.

Thick black smoke billowed from the Gotthard tunnel's ventilation points

This often means overloading vehicles, employing drivers from non-EU countries such as Bulgaria and paying them a pittance and forcing drivers to work long hours.

An ITF poll of unionised drivers - who tend to work for the more reputable firms - found that more than 60% had fallen asleep at the wheel within the past three months.

"The freight industry must prove its safety before it is allowed to go through these tunnels," says Mr Goodwin.

And yet, until the rail industry can compete with bargain basement hauliers on price and flexibility there seems little prospect of a significant change in habits - no matter how high the cost in human lives.