(Finance) – Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (FS Italiane Group) starts construction activities to double the tracks of the Fiumefreddo-Taormina / Letojanni and Taormina-Giampilieri sections, on the itinerary Palermo – Catania – Messina.
The company communicates this in a note underlining that interventions for the completion of the doubling of the line between Messina and Catania, an integral part of the TEN-T Scandinavia-Mediterranean Corridor, consent to increase freight traffic and improve the mobility of Sicilian travelers, reducing travel times between the two cities by 30 minutes and developing a metropolitan service.
Specifically, the works on the section Fiumefreddo – Taormina / Letojanni they envisage the construction of 15 kilometers of new double-track line, of which 11 in the tunnel, between Fiumefreddo and Taormina, with a connection to the Letojanni station. The interventions were entrusted to the Messina Catania Lotto Sud Consortium, for a total investment by RFI of 872 million euros.
In the Taormina – Giampilieri section, over 28 kilometers of new double-track line will be built, of which more than 25 in tunnels and the rest in embankments, trenches and viaducts. The works will be carried out by the Messina Catania Lotto Nord Consortium, with a total investment by RFI of 1.43 billion euros.
The two consortia are made up of the companies Webuild Italia – Impresa Pizzarotti – Partecipazioni Italia.
The phased conclusion of the interventions underway along the Messina – Catania – Palermo itinerary, with a total investment of 9.3 billion euros also financed with PNRR funds, it will allow progressive reductions in travel times, to the advantage of people traveling for work, study and tourism purposes. In addition, they will allow for an increase in the capacity of passenger and freight trains on the line, with the movement of freight trains to European standards. Finally, the construction of the entire work will make it possible to improve the interconnections between the inland areas of Sicily and the three cities.