Bözberg Pass is a mountain pass

Mountain pass

A mountain pass is a route through a mountain range or over a ridge. If following the lowest possible route, a pass is locally the highest point on that route...

 in the Jura Mountains

Jura mountains

The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...

 in the canton

Cantons of Switzerland

The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...

 of Aargau

Aargau

Aargau is one of the more northerly cantons of Switzerland. It comprises the lower course of the river Aare, which is why the canton is called Aar-gau .-History:...

 in Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

.

It connects the Frick River valley and Brugg

Brugg

Brugg or Brügg may refer to the following places:* In Switzerland:** Brugg, Aargau, in the Canton of Aargau*** FC Brugg, a Swiss football club, from the town of Brugg in Canton Aargau...

 and is the shortest road between Basel

Basel

Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...

 and Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

.

Two tunnels have been dug under the pass, one for the Federal Railway

SBB

This article is about the Polish band. For the Michigan band, see Small Brown BikeSBB is a Polish progressive rock band formed in 1971 in Siemianowice, Upper Silesia by multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Józef Skrzek...

 and one for the A-3 Autobahn.

History

In Roman

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

 times, the pass was an important link between Augusta Raurica

Augusta Raurica

Augusta Raurica is a Roman archaeological site and an open-air museum in Switzerland. Located on the south bank of the Rhine river about 20 km east of Basel near the villages of Augst and Kaiseraugst, it is the oldest known Roman colony on the Rhine....

 and Vindonissa

Vindonissa

Vindonissa was a Roman legion camp at modern Windisch, Switzerland. It was probably established in 15 AD. In an expansion around 30, thermal baths were added....

. The Roman road ran somewhat north of the present route, and a stretch of it can be seen near Effingen

Effingen

Effingen is a municipality in the district of Brugg in canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:Effingen is first mentioned in 1284 as Efingen though the area was settled earlier. The earliest evidence of a settlement is a High Middle Ages chapel with associated Alamanni graves.Effingen belonged...

.

During the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

, there were three different roads over the pass, all of which started from Effingen. The northern one followed the route of the Roman road to the ferries at Lauffohr and Stilli

Stilli

Stilli is a former municipality of the canton of Aargau, Switzerland. On 1 January 2006, it merged with its neighbouring municipality, Villigen.-Economy:...

, the middle one through Unterbözberg

Unterbözberg

Unterbözberg is a municipality in the district of Brugg in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:Unterbözberg is first mentioned in 1189 as Bozeberch. Until 1873, the municipality was part of Bözberg, which split into Oberbözberg and Unterbözberg.-Geography:Unterbözberg has an area, , of...

 to Brugg, and the southern one through Gallenkirch

Gallenkirch

Gallenkirch is a municipality in the district of Brugg in canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:Gallenkirch is first mentioned in 1338 as Gallenkilch. During the Middle Ages, Gallenkirch was part of the district of Hornussen under the city of Bad Säckingen. Religiously, until the Reformation...

 and Linn

Linn, Switzerland

Linn is a municipality in the district of Brugg in canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-History:Linn is first mentioned around 1303-08 as ze Linne. In 1307 it was mentioned as ze Lind. The name is probably connected with the 500-800-year-old, legendary Linden tree which is east of Linn. In the...

 to the ferry at Birrenlauf (Schinznach-Bad

Schinznach-Bad

Schinznach-Bad is a municipality in the district of Brugg in canton of Aargau in Switzerland.-Geography:Schinznach-Bad has an area, , of . Of this area, or 5.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 38.9% is forested...

).

The middle route won out, even though it was swampy and steep (with grades up to 20 percent) and too small for large coaches. Commercial traffic took a detour until the city of Bern built a better road between 1773 and 1779.

The railroad line was opened in 1875. With the advent of the automobile, the pass developed heavy traffic. In 1995, the year before the completion of the tunnel, 12,500 vehicles crossed the pass per day. Today, only about 3500 vehicles cross the pass each day.