The summer of 2025 is set to be particularly challenging for the Milan-Genoa railway. Extensive maintenance will necessitate the partial or complete closure of the Po bridge located between Cava Manara and Bressana Bottarone, thus between Pavia and Voghera. RFI has scheduled the second phase of works, the most impactful, following previous upgrades to the track infrastructure in that section, incorporating innovative solutions for sleepers and rail fastenings, including the installation of special expansion joints.
The €50 million project is slated from 1 June to 28 September 2025. Partial closures will occur from June to 20 July and from 30 August to 28 September, affecting one track at a time and allowing traffic on the adjacent track. A complete shutdown is planned for forty days from 21 July to 29 August. All long-distance trains typically operating between Voghera and Milan will be impacted, especially freight trains, which will be prohibited from running for the entire four-month duration of the works.
To mitigate the line interruption, RFI has developed an operational plan involving alternative routes. However, this does not eliminate the risk of delays and cancellations, as traffic on other lines is expected to increase significantly. Specifically, for freight trains, depending on their origin and destination, three alternatives are proposed: from Genoa via the corridor towards Alessandria and Novara to reach the Milan hub; through Voghera to Piacenza and then Milan; and for trains from central Italy, routing through Bologna and Piacenza. The network operator estimates that 242 weekly trains will be diverted onto the Voghera-Piacenza line, 255 onto the Piacenza-Milan line, and 83 onto the Alessandria-Novara line.
The Po bridge at Bressana is considered a structure of particular concern due to its age, having been rebuilt post-war after wartime destruction. Constructed of iron, it spans 764 metres over ten sections and uniquely features a two-tier design, with the railway below and the Strada Statale dei Giovi above. Current conditions impose significant restrictions: passenger trains have a maximum speed of 115 km/h, reduced to 60 km/h for freight trains; road traffic is limited to 60 km/h, monitored by dual speed cameras using the Tutor system. Upon completion of the works, railway speed limits will increase to 180 km/h for passenger trains and 100 km/h for freight trains.
The road infrastructure will also be addressed, with the deck slated for complete refurbishment at a later, yet-to-be-determined date. RFI has meticulously outlined the planned works, summarised here by TrasportoEuropa. The road deck will be demolished and rebuilt one lane at a time to avoid a total traffic closure. The initial focus will be on the northbound lane, followed by the southbound lane. Traffic, still prohibited for industrial vehicles, will operate on an alternating one-way system regulated by time slots based on traffic volumes, with two turnaround roundabouts planned to minimise disruption. Without this approach, traditional traffic light control could have led to significant issues, with RFI precisely estimating potential queues up to 2.5 kilometres in the busiest direction.
A fundamental question remains. While the need to upgrade the current structure, which supports both rail and road traffic, is undisputed, what does the future hold when the planned quadrupling of tracks between Pavia and Voghera—still in its early stages—comes to fruition? Will the existing, albeit refurbished, bridge be supplemented by a new two-track bridge, or would it be more prudent to construct a single four-track viaduct?
Piermario Curti Sacchi
