The construction of the Brenner Base Tunnel (BBT) took an important step forward with the breaking of the last rocks separating Italy and Austria. “A historic milestone: the cut-throughs for both mainline tunnels were completed simultaneously”, BBT celebrated.
The event took place 1,400 metres underground, merging the Italian Lot H61 Mules 2-3 and the Austrian Lot H53 Pfons-Brenner. Currently, 95% of the tunnel system has been excavated, according to BBT, leaving only a small section below Pfons to still dig.
In addition to the two countries ‘meeting’, the event also brings together two different ways of digging. The Italian section was excavated with Tunnel Boring Machines, the Austrian one the traditional way with explosives. “The real stars of this historic day are not wearing formal attire. They are the miners, the foremen, the blasters, the machine operators, the electricians, the surveyors, the geologists, the safety officers and the engineers”, BBT added.
The Brenner Base Tunnel
The BBT will run for 55 kilometres between Innsbruck (AT) and Fortezza (IT). It sits along one of Europe’s busiest logistics axes, Verona-Munich. The base tunnel should be ready somewhere around 2032 and 2034 with a total cost of over €10 billion.
Once ready, the BBT will absorb most of the traffic currently running on the mountainous line, which restricts speed and power of freight trains. Capacity should increase from 60 to 90 daily freight convoys crossing the border between Austria and Italy.
The new tunnel will reduce transit time for freight trains by one hour and ten minutes, with the maximum steepness going from 26‰ to 7‰. This, other than making journeys shorter, will also erase the need for an additional locomotive, further reducing costs for operators.
The access routes dilemma
To fully maximise its potential, the tunnel needs to be surrounded by adequate infrastructure. On the Italian side, access routes are being excavated with minor hiccups delaying the Trento bypass project to 2033 or 2034. Austria should also finish the northern access route to the BBT in Tyrol by the early 2030s.
Bigger issues arise when it comes to the German stretch leading to Munich, especially for the cross-border line to Kufstein. Earlier this year, the Bavarian government rejected a €15-billion proposal for a new line brought forward by Deutsche Bahn, asking for more sections to be in tunnels. All these obstacles might shift the timeline to 2050, hindering the tunnel’s full potential.