ZURICH, March 11 (Reuters) - Switzerland is closing nine secondary border crossings to Italy and directing traffic over main routes to help slow the spread of the new coronavirus while still letting the region’s workers get to their jobs, the government said on Wednesday.

“The border to Italy remains open for cross-border commuters” with work permits, the Swiss government said.

Italy has been an epicentre of European coronavirus infections and has imposed severe travel restrictions in an attempt to curb its spread.