On 26 July 2012, the third gateway to the city was opened: the Vedeggio-Cassarate Tunnel. It directly connects the Vedeggio area to Cornaredo, relieving traffic pressure on the Lugano South and Lugano North highway entrances. The tunnel leads directly to Cornaredo, and from there, thanks to the new traffic redistribution introduced by the Piano della viabilità del Polo luganese (Lugano Mobility Plan, PVP), drivers can choose the shortest route to their destination.

New routes and a new traffic light system

Thanks to a new access plan and a new traffic light management system, entering the city is now smoother, and the historic center and residential areas are better protected from through traffic.

Key Interventions

  • Via Trevano, Via Ciani, and Via Ceresio are the main routes to reach the city center.
  • Two-way traffic introduced in Via Ciani, Viale Cassarate, Via Balestra, and up to Via Pioda in Viale Cattaneo.
  • Reversed traffic flow in Corso Elvezia.
  • Traffic flow improvement from Via San Gottardo to Massagno.

Public Transport

The City of Lugano has worked to make public transport more attractive, efficient, and advantageous. Bus lines have been enhanced; dedicated lanes and service frequency have increased. For those needing to go downtown for an extended period, it is more convenient to leave their car in a Park&Ride facility and then use public transport. This approach reduces unnecessary traffic. To support this mechanism, which aims to discourage superfluous traffic without penalizing businesses, parking spaces in the city center have been reduced.
 

Urban Space Redevelopment

The main connection routes between districts, as well as internal roads, were designed to protect residential areas. Limiting through traffic is one of the goals of the PVP. With the new road layout, it was possible to redevelop entire areas, reorganizing their spaces according to their role within the city. For instance, Besso and Massagno have been transformed into premium residential areas, while Pian Scairolo has benefitted from access suited to the needs of businesses and companies. Moreover, directly served by the tunnel, the New Cornaredo District is being developed in the north of the city and will become an area dedicated to services.

Green Areas

One of the most interesting urban planning measures of the PVP was the development of the city’s green spaces. The park along the Cassarate River in the Piano Stampa area has been transformed into an attractive riverside park, a green corridor offering residents a natural path with areas dedicated to relaxation and leisure. At the same time, slow mobility within the city has been promoted: pedestrian paths connecting green spaces and cycling routes have been facilitated.

The report on the results of the monitoring carried out in 2014 by the General Project Directorate (GPD) summarizes the actions performed by the PVP (Phase A) and focuses on the achievement of strategic objectives. 

The monitoring identified a reduction in road traffic pressure on the southern and northern access points and the stabilization of traffic load in the urban area, with smoother circulation. The PVP brought benefits in terms of stabilizing traffic entering and exiting the city and its new distribution across multiple axes. In particular, the northern access points to the city (Vezia, Massagno, Besso) were significantly relieved. 

The PVP also laid the foundations for the redevelopment of urban spaces; according to the report, city traffic is globally smoother, and some districts have been relieved, improving the quality of life for residents. The implementation of the PVP (Phase A) also made it possible to free certain streets, particularly in the city center, from through traffic, benefiting pedestrians and laying the groundwork for enhancing the area.

Public transport benefited from the new road layout, with a significant increase in passenger numbers (in 2019, an average of approximately 31,000 people used TPL buses daily). There remains room for optimization of the traffic light system to reduce the discomfort caused outside peak traffic periods due to prolonged waits at certain junctions.

The results of the monitoring conducted by the Cantonal Department of Territory and a study by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (Institut für Verkehrsplanung und Transportsysteme) in 2015 confirm a reduction in overall travel times. However, despite a decrease in through traffic, traffic issues persist at certain urban junctions, particularly in the city center. The situation remains under observation, and optimization efforts continue: since the implementation of the PVP, several targeted measures have been introduced to improve the functioning of the road network and reduce waiting times.

The cantonal monitoring of the traffic effects of the Vedeggio-Cassarate Tunnel shows, for instance, that the new infrastructure has facilitated the diversion of part of the transit traffic to the bypass, significantly relieving certain main arteries of the city’s access network.

On 29 September 2019, two new turning possibilities were introduced with the aim of facilitating traffic flow and directions at the intersection of Palazzo dei Congressi (Piazza Castello) and improving accessibility to the city center, the Balestra parking garage, and the lakeside.

The first measure allows left turns from the lakeside towards Corso Pestalozzi. The second measure introduces left turns for those coming from Viale Cattaneo towards the lakeside.

The English version of this page was created with the aid of automatic translation tools and may contain errors and omissions.

The original version is the page in Italian.

Contacts

Città di Lugano
Pianificazione, ambiente e energia, mobilità
Via della Posta 8
6900 Lugano
t. +41 58 866 77 11

See also