THE FINAL DESIGN
PROJECT RESTART
Law Decree 35 of 31 March 2023 (converted into Law 58 of 26 May 2023) established the restart of activity leading to construction of the Strait of Messina Bridge.
On 15 February 2024, Stretto di Messina’s Board of Directors approved the Designer’s Report supplementing the Final Design of 2011, confirms the alignment of the Final Design with the Preliminary Design and identifies further requirements to be satisfied in the Detailed Design to ensure that it takes into account:
a) NTC2018 construction standards and the resulting changes to the geotechnical assessment;
b) the latest safety regulations;
c) specific design standards in design manuals currently in use, save for any exceptions;
d) environmental compatibility;
e) any further design adjustments deemed to be essential in view of recent developments in technology and in the use of building materials;
f) the testing called for in the opinion issued by the Scientific Committee.
Approval of the documentation is the result of a series of checks carried out by Stretto di Messina. In addition to the Company’s technical experts, this involved Parsons Transportation Group as the Project Management Consultant and an Expert Panel
with responsibility for overseeing technical and specialist aspects, consisting of four leading experts in aerodynamics, aeroelastics, seismology, geotechnics and the environment.
The Company also obtained a favourable opinion from the Scientific Committee with recommendations on the Report.
- Designer’s Report (102 Mb pdf)
- Report of the Scientific Committee (4,6 Mb pdf)
- Final Design
- Technical Aspects
ENTITIES ENGAGED IN THE PROJECT
Stretto di Messina has taken an innovative approach to structuring the organisation tasked with delivering the project. This involves a number of entities, including the General Contractor, the Project Management Consultant and the Environmental Monitor.
Stretto di Messina holds the concession to develop, design, finance, build and operate the Strait of Messina Bridge. It is responsible for the entire construction process and, subsequently, for operation of the infrastructure, with the exclusion of the railway tracks.
Selected following an international tender process, the Project Management Consultant is responsible for controlling and overseeing preparation of the final and detailed designs and construction of the Strait of Messina Bridge and its road and rail links. It is also responsible for control and oversight of the Environmental Monitor.
The Project Management Consultant is the US company Parsons Transportation Group, the global leader in the design and construction of suspension bridges. Stretto di Messina’s decision to adopt the project management model is of strategic importance. The aim is to take the most appropriate approach to overseeing and monitoring all the operational and design-related variables to ensure that the bridge meets the relevant quality standards and is delivered on time and within the established budget. Among other things, this will mean ensuring the closest possible coordination of all the entities involved in construction of the infrastructure.
The General Contractor is the entity selected by Stretto di Messina, following an international tender process, to produce the final and detailed designs and build the Strait of Messina Bridge and its road and rail links. It is also responsible for works supervision, the environmental monitoring of sites and HSE management.
The General Contractor is the temporary consortium, Eurolink, consisting of the lead contractor, Webuild SpA, and the following members:
- Sacyr SA (Spain)
- Società Italiana Per Condotte D’Acqua SpA
- Cooperativa Muratori & Cementisti-CMC di Ravenna
- Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries CO Ltd. (Japan)
- A.C.I. S.c.p.a - Consorzio Stabile.
The bridge designer is the Danish company, Cowi.
Selected following an international tender process, this entity conducts environmental, territorial and social monitoring on behalf of Stretto di Messina during pre-construction, construction and operation of the Strait of Messina Bridge and its road and rail links.
The Environmental Monitor is the temporary consortium led by Edison Next Environment Srl.
The surveys conducted by the Monitor play a key role in assessing the territorial, environmental and socioeconomic impacts of the infrastructure. They will enable Stretto di Messina to supervise the General Contractor and obtain real-time confirmation of the effectiveness of the mitigating measures planned and implemented.
TECHNICAL FEATURES
The updated design has confirmed all the main technical features of the Bridge and its land-based links
- Central suspended span: 3,300 metres
- Total length: 3,666 metres (including two 183-metre side spans)
- Height of the towers at each end: 399 metres
- Suspension cables: 4 with a diameter of 1.26 metres (each consisting of 44,323 steel wires)
- Width of the deck: 60.4 metres (3 road lanes in each direction, 2 service lanes and 2 rail tracks)
- Clearance: 65 metres over a width of 600 metres, under exceptional conditions of heavy road and rail traffic. Clearance rises to 72 metres in the absence of rail traffic
- Open to traffic 365 days a year, 24 hours a day
- Useful life: 200 years
ROAD AND RAIL INFRASTRUCTURE LINKING THE
BRIDGE TO THE SURROUNDING AREAS
The road and rail infrastructure linking the Bridge to the surrounding areas include 40 km of road and rail links (approximately 80% of which running through tunnels) connecting, on the Calabrian side, with the Autostrada del Mediterraneo and Villa San Giovanni train station and, on the Sicilian side, with the Messina-Catania and Messina-Palermo motorways and the new Messina train station.
20.3 KM OF ROAD LINKS
- 56% in tunnels
- Category A road: 2 lanes + an emergency lane in each direction
- Free Flow tolling system
20.2 KM OF RAIL LINKS
- 92% of the rail links with be in tunnels
- Railway standards meeting EU Technical Specifications for Interoperability
- 3 underground train stations
- Completion of the Helsinki-Palermo rail corridor
REDUCED JOURNEY TIMES
EARTHQUAKES, WIND AND RAILWAY RUNNABILITY: HIGHEST LEVELS OF SAFETY
The bridge and land-based links are capable of withstanding:
- an earthquake of 7.1 on the Richter scale
Suspension bridges such as the Strait of Messina Bridge are structures that are by nature not exposed to earthquakes given that they are broadly unaffected by seismic frequencies. The impact of an earthquake on the bridge, with particular regard to land-based infrastructure, was paid great attention right from the beginning of the design process. The seismogenic potential of the area around the Strait is not capable of producing earthquakes of a greater magnitude than the one taken into account in the bridge design (7.1 on the Richter scale). With an earthquake of this magnitude, the bridge remains within the elastic field, without incurring damage, and thereby providing further safety margins beyond the threshold provided for. Studies conducted over many decades have reinforced our understanding of the earthquake of 1908 (7.1 on the Richter scale) and of the resulting main fault, classifying it as an extremely rare event not expected to be repeated for over two thousand years. In addition, as noted earlier, as part of the update of the final design, the seismic characteristics of the area around the Strait were reviewed in 2023.
- wind speeds in excess of 300 km per hour
Definable as “designed by the wind”. Thanks to the aerodynamic nature of the wing-like profile, the bridge is designed to withstand wind speeds of over 216 km per hour, even if in more than twenty years of wind monitoring by a local meteorological station wind speeds have never reached more than 150 km per hour. Great attention has also been paid to medium and low wind speeds (below 70 km per hour), which have represented a hidden danger for many bridges. Years of wind tunnel tests have enabled us to achieve excellent levels of crossing comfort and stability. Thanks to the wind tunnel tests, the wing-like profile also allows traffic to continue using the bridge in high winds, meaning that the bridge will be open to trains and cars 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
- the presence of two 750-metre-long heavy trains at any point on the bridge at the same time
The static analysis was calculated on the basis of four 750-metre-long trains, two trains on each track.
KEY UPDATES INTRODUCED BY THE DESIGNER’S REPORT
METHODOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL UPDATES – DESIGN / MAINTENANCE / OPERATION
- Preparation of the Detailed Design using BIM
- Upgrade of the systems used for:
- structural monitoring (SHMS – Structural Health Monitoring System)
- maintenance management (BMS – Bridge Management System)
- control and operation (MACS – Management and Control System)
METHODOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL UPDATES – DESIGN/MAINTENANCE/OPERATION
ADJUSTMENTS DUE TO DEVELOPMENTS INCONSTRUCTION MATERIAL TECHNOLOGY
ADJUSTMENTS DUE TO DEVELOPMENTS I CONSTRUCTION MATERIAL TECHNOLOGY
- Redesign of the anchor blocks
- Internal dehumidification system for steel structures
- Active and passive fire protection systems
ROAD LINKS: PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE, SMART ROADS PROVIDING ADVANCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE AND FREE FLOW TOLLING
- Geotechnical monitoring
- Smart roads
- Free flow tolling
- Initiatives promoting the bridge as a tourist destination
ROAD LINKS: PREDICTIVE MAINTENANCE, SMART ROADS PROVIDING ADVANCED DRIVER ASSISTANCE AND FREE FLOW TOLLING
RAIL LINKS: STATION SECURITY AND SAFETY
RAIL LINKS: STATION SECURITY AND SAFETY
- Updated structural monitoring systems
- Fixed derailment detection systems
- Level 2 ERTMS signalling system
- Permanent LiDAR station
UPDATE OF ENVIRONMENTAL DOCUMENTATION
Focusing on the:
- Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA),
- Environmental Impact Study,
- Compliance Report and Landscape Report
INITIATIVES MITIGATING LIGHT POLLUTION CAUSED BY THE BRIDGE
The removal of accent lighting and the use of highly directional lighting, reducing brightness and using tunable white LED lighting.
PROJECT STAGES
As provided for in Law Decree 35 of 31 May 2023 (converted into Law 58 of 26 May 2023), the Final Design has been updated. The steps in the approval procedure are:
FINAL DESIGN update
STRETTO DI MESSINA APPROVES FINAL DESIGN AND SUBMITS IT TO MINISTRIES AND RELEVANT AUTHORITIES
SERVICES CONFERENCES IS CONVENED AND EIA RESTARTS
CIPESS APPROVAL
CONSTRUCTION BEGINS
OPENING TO TRAFFIC EXPECTED IN 2032
As required by Law Decree 35, the Company must submit the approved documentation to the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (“MIT”), which then calls the related Services Conference. Central and local government entities involved in delivery of the project take part in the Conference.
Identical documentation is at the same time submitted to the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security, the Ministry of Culture and other relevant authorities to obtain the various environmental consents and landscape approvals.
In line with the requirements of Law Decree 35, the MIT then submits the final design and the designer’s report to CIPESS (a Government Committee) for approval, together with any observations, requests and conditions arising from the Services Conference, any conditions resulting from the environmental impact assessment and the financial plan.
Stretto di Messina will draw up the above financial plan, showing how the cost of the project will be covered by the funding made available in the 2024 Budget Law, together with the funds raised following the Company’s earlier capital increase and expected income generated by the bridge.
STRATEGIC INFRASTRUCTURE FOR THE EUROPEAN UNION
The Bridge forms part of the route for the Scandinavian-Mediterranean Multimodal Corridor, a north-south corridor that the EU considers to be of major importance, with rail freight crossing Europe from Helsinki and Stockholm through to Palermo and Catania, before heading on to Malta.
The main aim of the infrastructure network is to make freight and passenger transport more sustainable, reducing the environmental impact by transferring transport from road to rail, whilst at the same time facilitating trade by removing the bottlenecks that currently cause congestion and delays.
On 21 October 2024, Stretto di Messina and CINEA (the European Commission’s Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency) signed a Grant Agreement for the European co-financing for the cost of the detailed design for the Strait of Messina Bridge. This is a non-repayable contribution of approximately €25 million, covering 50% of the detailed design costs relating to the project’s rail infrastructure. The proposal put forward by Stretto di Messina in January 2024 was accepted by the European Commission, which confirmed that the project is of common interest, as it relates to all the four objectives defined in the TEN-T corridor regulation, namely cohesion, efficiency, sustainability and increased user benefits.
"The fate of present and future generations depends, more than ever before, on the quality and quantity of the infrastructure that connects us all."
