Piazza Ticino is situated on the Ceneri Pass, in the spot where the nineteenth-century politician Stefano Franscini proposed building Concordia, the new capital of Canton Ticino, in the hope that it could overcome the divisions between Bellinzona, Lugano and Locarno.
With its totem and its elliptical shape, it symbolises the unity of the canton. This union has been strengthened by the AlpTransit tunnels (Gotthard and Ceneri), which have speeded up connections between the canton’s main cities and towards the other side of the Alps and other countries. The totem was created using rock extracted from the heart of Ticino during the AlpTransit construction process. There is also a photographic display of the Grand Tour of Switzerland.
