Everything went according to plan, although nothing was guaranteed until the last moment due to technical and bureaucratic challenges and the presence of local opposition movements. Yet, in mid-June 2024, RFI officially handed over the southern construction site of the Trento freight railway bypass to the builders. This formal step signifies the point of no return for a project that has experienced a tumultuous path, particularly due to its potential environmental impact and the need to clean up heavily polluted former industrial areas north of Trento.
Originally, this project was included among those funded by the PNRR, but due to the unrealistic deadline of completing the works by 2026, it was removed from that list. Nevertheless, RFI ensured financial availability to start the works, which were assigned in February 2023 to Consorzio Tridentum, a consortium led by Webuild, along with Ghella, Collini Lavori, and Seli Overseas. The project's value, after the latest updates, is around €1.3 billion.
The bypass construction begins from the southern entrance of Trento, where the initial phase involves preparing the area and access tunnels for the two mechanical cutters that will dig northwards. These TBMs, made in China, have already arrived in Italy, disassembled into various parts, and will need to be reassembled and mounted directly on-site.
Handing over the project to Consorzio Tridentum is a significant milestone, although the crucial phase of the work, when the TBMs will start their engines, is not expected before spring-summer 2025. In a second phase, excavation will also begin from the north with two additional German-made TBMs. The use of four TBMs simultaneously is planned to reduce construction time as much as possible. The railway bypass consists of a 13-kilometer route through the eastern hills, with about 11 kilometers in a twin-tube tunnel.
The new infrastructure will originate from the existing Verona-Brennero railway line, south of Trento in the Acquaviva area, where the work starts, and will reconnect in the north near Roncafort, close to the freight railway yard and the Trento interport. This project is one of the four priority variants to be completed ahead of the entire high-capacity railway line from Verona to the southern entrance of the Brenner Base Tunnel.
The first of these variants, from Ponte Gardena to Fortezza, essential to reduce the gradient of the historic line, was contracted in June 2021 for €1.16 billion to a consortium that also prominently features Webuild.
The countdown has also begun for completing the excavation and rough lining of the Brenner Base Tunnel on the Italian side, where the Mules and Isarco underpass sites are located. The finish line is in sight, with just over two kilometers of mountain left to dig out of a total of over 44 kilometers of main tunnels.
Piermario Curti Sacchi
