Ferragosto (15 August) is the main Italian summer holiday. Italian motorways are jammed and the return wave of Italians from Switzerland reaches the Gotthard.
N → S (Göschenen)
S → N (Airolo)
Tunnel
openPass
closedSituation updated in real time
Worst hours
13:00–18:00
Depart before
11:00
or after
19:00
Worst hours
08:00–14:00
Depart before
06:00
or after
16:00
Historically the most congested day of the year at the Gotthard. Queues of 18–20 km have been recorded in recent years.
Worst hours
13:00–18:00
Depart before
10:00
or after
19:30
| Day | Direction | Risk | Best windows | Peak hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Friday 14 August | ↓ Southbound | Extreme | before 11:00 · after 19:00 | 13:00–18:00 |
| Saturday 15 August The most critical day of the year. Depart before dawn or postpone by at least two days. | ↓ Southbound | Extreme | before 06:00 · after 16:00 | 08:00–14:00 |
| Sunday 16 August Heavy bidirectional traffic: both southbound exodus and first northbound return peaks. | ↑ Northbound | High | before 09:00 | 11:00–17:00 |
| Monday 17 August | ↑ Northbound | Extreme | before 10:00 · after 19:30 | 13:00–18:00 |
Worst hours
08:00–14:00
Expected queue
~18 km
The weekend of 14–15 August is historically the most intense of the year at the Gotthard. Northbound queues (returns to Italy) on 17 August can be equally long. Expect up to 3–4 hours wait.
Contraflow threshold: 10 km
At Ferragosto, ASTRA may activate contraflow (senso unico alternato) in the tunnel itself for very long queues. When queues exceed 10 km, ASTRA officially activates the diversion via San Bernardino (A13). If the tunnel closes, San Bernardino becomes mandatory.
Queue ≥ 10 km
Official ASTRA diversion to A13 San Bernardino
Tunnel closed (emergency)
A13 San Bernardino mandatory — follow ASTRA signage
Strongly recommended during Ferragosto. Usually free or with short waits even during the most intense weekend of the year.
Open in August. Good scenic alternative but slower.
Touring Club Switzerland – real-time traffic information with Gotthard queue alerts.
Swiss real-time road information, including queue and diversion data on the A2.
British road transport research foundation – useful for contextualising European summer traffic peaks.