BBT: 200 kilometres excavated
Work on the BBT is progressing quickly: the 200 kilometres of excavated tunnels, representing around 87 per cent of the total, are being celebrated these days. A historic goal is on the horizon: the first continuous underground connection between Italy and Austria.
The first 100 kilometres of tunnels excavated in the BBT project were celebrated in May 2019, just over six years ago. The project has made great strides in the six years since then.
All three Italian TBMs successfully completed their journey to the State border today. Work on the 'H71 Isarco River Underpass' site in Italy and the 'H52 Hochstegen' and 'H21 Sill Gorge' sites in Austria has been completed.
Gilberto Cardola and Martin Gradnitzer, CEOs of BBT SE, emphasise the great team spirit that has always characterised the project: ‘Reaching the milestone of 200 kilometres excavated confirms once again that one of Europe's most ambitious infrastructure projects is progressing as planned. We are now closer than ever to achieving our major goal of building an efficient, continuous railway tunnel under the Brenner Pass’.
To date, 200 kilometres of tunnels have been excavated, including 96 kilometres of main tunnel, 57 kilometres of exploratory tunnels, and 47 kilometres of other tunnels, such as safety, logistics and by-passes.
Drilling and blasting excavation continues towards Brenner
The focus is now on the exploratory tunnel, which is located 10–12 metres below the two main tunnels. Just over 200 metres remain to reach the Brenner Pass on the Austrian side.
The first cross-border underground connection between Italy and Austria will be created by next autumn, once the excavation is completed. This will be a historic milestone for European mobility.
