ValP – Express: a high-speed metro for a sustainable mobility in the Alpes
An Alpine high-speed metro to achieve energy savings
Challenges addressed
Living in the Alps is becoming an energy issue because of the long distances involved and the increased energy consumption for transportation. The Vaud Pre-Alps region lives on tourism, which is also a source of local CO2 emissions.
The present project proposes to develop a solution for the transport of people and goods to limit their environmental impact and to increase the connectivity of the Pre-Alps resorts and make them unique, increasing the attractiveness of the region. The VAlp-Express is a high-speed metro that would link Aigle to the stations in the Vaud Alps.
Objectives
The research to be carried out in this project will focus on the technical feasibility of an Alpine high-speed metro concept and make an initial assessment of the energy gains, not only for transport but also for geothermal heat production along the excavation. It is necessary to ensure the technical feasibility, but also to identify the challenges to be met and the environmental efficiency, i.e. the grey energy and the potential gain in CO2.
What are the expected outputs of this project?
- Create a 3D geological model
- Propose a route with slopes not exceeding 10% to 12% comparable to the one carried out for the M2 metro line in Lausanne
- Realise research for excavation technologies
- Carry out an initial hydrogeological and geothermal model of the area, to evaluate the potential for energy production and possible water resources
- Evaluate different scenarios for reducing the transport of people and goods and the impact on CO2 production
You can find the final report of the project here (PDF).
Milestones
- October 2022
Scenarios of traffic reduction
- November 2022
Metro high-speed technology for sloping route assessment
- December 2022 to February 2023 + April 2023
Tunnelling technique assessment
- February to April 2023
Heat resource assessment
- December 2022 and September 2023
Communication and reporting
- April to July 2023
3D geological model
- July and August 2023
Hydrogeological model and thermal model
- August and September 2023
Water resources and other potential uses
Funding
This project is financed by CLIMACT.
Cover image: © 2022 UNIL/EPFL
Principal investigators
Prof. Michel Jaboyedoff
FGSE, UNIL
Prof. Lyesse Laloui
ENAC, EPFL
