Extra funding worth €370 million found for Italian bridge project

The Italian Government is ensuring an additional €370 million for the project to build a new bridge spanning the Messina Strait. The project has been proposed on previous occasions but now continues to gather pace.

This package comes in addition to the €672.5 million previously directed toward the project by the Italian Government for the Messina Strait Bridge. Italy’s Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) controls a 55.16% stake of the project.

The bridge will connect the island of Sicily with Calabria, on the southern tip of Italy’s mainland. These are the most economically depressed areas of Italy and the construction of the link is expected to boost trade and traffic, providing a much-needed economic gain.

However, there is still some scepticism as to whether the project will go ahead. A bridge spanning the Messina Strait has been discussed for 2,000 years, since Roman times. In the last 20 or so years, the project has become more feasible but will certainly be costly. The region is prone to earthquakes so a suspension bridge would be the most suitable option. However, to build such a structure would require enormous towers and a huge single span, breaking records for construction. While the design of such a structure may be technically feasible, it would be extremely costly to build, a factor that has halted previous plans in recent times.