While the reopening of the international Frejus railway remains contingent on ongoing work in France following a landslide that occurred on August 27, 2023, another border crossing is facing challenging days ahead. This time, it's the Arona-Verbania line, an intermediate segment between the Milan hub and the Simplon Tunnel towards the Valais in Switzerland, that is affected. Unlike the emergency situation with the Frejus railway, the closure of this line has been planned for some time to facilitate upgrade works that will be carried out in phases and will continue into 2025.
Train traffic on the Arona-Verbania line will be suspended for ninety days from June 9 to September 8, 2024. Significant disruptions are anticipated for all cross-border rail connections, affecting both long-distance passenger trains and freight transport. For freight, the options will be limited to either cancellation or rerouting through alternative paths, either via Borgomanero-Domodossola or through the Luino crossing.
The planned works on the 26-kilometer stretch between Arona and Verbania involve adjusting the clearance, particularly in tunnels, to achieve the maximum profile suitable for intermodal transport without restrictions, in accordance with the PC/80-P410 standard. The total investment exceeds 117 million euros, co-financed by Switzerland under an agreement signed in February 2022.
The efforts will focus on the Faraggiana tunnel, 1183 meters long near Arona, and the Stresa tunnel, 1072 meters long near the town of the same name. The two tunnels will achieve the required maximum clearance through lowering the track bed, which includes the tracks and ballast. The line's closure also provides an opportunity to equip this section with the European Ertms/Etcs signaling system, which will be extended to Premosello, a railway junction shared with the line via Novara-Borgomanero.
These works are part of the investment package outlined in the agreement with the Swiss Government, which has committed to a grant of 145 million euros to support the upgrade of the route involving Domodossola and the Simplon, after already financing works along the international Luino line towards the Gotthard, completed at the end of 2020 in conjunction with the opening of the Ceneri Base Tunnel. This also included adjustments to the standard 750-meter module to facilitate the crossing of freight trains.
On their part, the Italian railways had already electrified and upgraded to the maximum profile for intermodal transport the single-track railway from Novara, through Borgomanero, to Domodossola and the Simplon pass in 2001, but the route along Lake Maggiore, namely the Arona-Stresa-Domodossola, had been excluded from upgrade projects until now.
Piermario Curti Sacchi
