Italy to build world’s largest suspension bridgeFeb 26, 2009

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Italy is planning to build the world’s largest suspension bridge. The bridge will connect Sicily to the mainland.

The decision to build was met with a great deal of skepticism. The construction of the bridge, according to estimates, is going to amount to 8 billion USD. With costs pushing through the roof, it appears unreasonable to create such a giant in a region prone to earthquakes. Some of the engineers warn that the large pylons will be highly susceptible to the strong winds so common in the region. The Minister of Public Works of Italy said that, indeed, the projected budget is about 6 billion, but work has already begun and there is no way back.

The Minister also notes that the creation of the bridge will play an important role in the accommodation of semi-abandoned railroads both in Sicily and Calabria. In addition it is planned to modernize local ports. It is expected that after the work is finished the bridge will attract a large number of tourists travelling between Sicily and mainland Italy. For the first time the creation of the bridge was debated in the period from 2001 till 2006, during the office of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. However his successor, Romano Prodi of the left coalition, blocked the decision, since, in his opinion, the bridge would only benefit the big construction companies controlled by the mafia. The new prime minister called this project “the most useless and dangerous plan in the last 100 years”.

Last year Silvio Berlusconi returned to office and restarted the work on the project. He still insists that the construction of the bridge will create thousands of jobs and will contribute to the improvement of tourism industry and local transportation infrastructure, replacing the services of the ferrymen. The bridge is projected to sustain a work load of 5000 automobiles per hour. The bridge will also pack railroad tracks for high speed trains. The ancient Romans were the first ones to dream of a bridge connecting Sicily to the mainland, the dream was passes on to the Norman conquerors. Let’s see how much further modern Italy will take it.