Workers blew trumpets, cheered and set off fireworks when the giant drill Sissi penetrated through the last stretch of rock thousands of feet underground in the Swiss Alps. Workers wiped away tears as foreman Hubert Baer lifted a statue of Saint Barbara — the patron saint of miners — through a small hole in the enormous drilling.

A statue of Saint Barbara with a mining lamp in her hand

A giant drilling machine punches through a wall of rock to complete the world's longest tunnel beneath the Swiss Alps Friday.

Miners celebrate

Workers celebrate the break trough of the second shaft of Gotthard Tunnel on Oct 15 2010

The Gotthard tunnel now exceeds the Seikan rail tunnel linking the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido.

Miners celebrate after a giant drilling machine punched its way through a final section of Alpine rock to complete the world's longest tunnel

A national groundswell of elation swept throughout Switzerland over the costly, technically difficult project that has been 60 years in the making .The Gotthard Base Tunnel reflected the one cause that unites the country’s wealthy city dwellers with those living in traditional villages: Protecting the beauty of the mountains.

Peter Fueglistaler, director of the Swiss Federal Office of Transport, called Friday “a day of joy for Switzerland.”

“Together we risked a lot,” said Swiss Transport Minister Moritz Leuenberger. “Together we achieved a lot.”

The world is awed that Switzerland — a country of just under 8 million people — has chosen to pursue such an ambitious project. Swiss voters approved the tunnel’s construction in a series of referendums almost 20 years ago. Despite some criticism at the $10 billion cost — almost $1,300 for every citizen — the proposal passed by a wide margin.

Even though Switzerland already transports some 62 percent of freight by rail, it is mindful that heavy goods traffic has contributed to the steady erosion harming fragile Alpine plants and animals — as well as cherished scenery — the Gotthard tunnel aims to reduce the damage that heavy trucks are inflicting on Switzerland’s pristine Alpine landscape. It is part of a larger effort to cut in half the number of trucks — now at 1.2 million — that thunder through the Alps each year.

The Gotthard Base Tunnel now exceeds the 53.9 kilometers Seikan Tunnel linking the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. The new Gotthard Base Tunnel will pave the way for continuous high-speed rail transportation between northern and southeastern Europe.

Switzerland’s dependence on its neighbors to play their part in the plan for a cross-European high-speed rail network was mirrored Friday in the many different flags waved by workers in the newly carved hole under the mountains.

Many paid tribute to the eight men who died working in the tunnel over the years. Others also took time to congratulate their colleagues in Chile who rescued the 33 miners from a collapsed mine earlier this week.

First conceived in 1947 by engineer Eduard Gruner, the project has seen some 2,500 workers spending nearly 20 years smashing through the rock beneath the towering Gotthard massif, including the 8,200-foot Piz Vatgira (Vatgira Peak).

When the $10 billion tunnel opens for rail traffic in 2017,  it will let passenger and cargo trains pass under the Alps at speeds of up to 155 mph on their way from Germany to Italy.

European transport ministers watched the breakthrough ceremony live from a meeting in Luxembourg, conscious that Switzerland has set the bar very high for future cross-Alpine rail projects. Two further tunnels — one connecting connect Lyon, France, to Turin in Italy, and the other replacing the Brenner road tunnel between Austria and Italy — are still a long way from completion.

Swiss engineers are hoping to complete the rail tunnel even sooner than planned — possibly by the end of 2016 — but its first high-speed trains could be delayed by protests in Germany and Italy, where local opposition to new tracks and budget constraints have become an issue in recent months.