Major road tunnel between France and Italy set to reopen after ten years of construction work
Traffic will only be one-way at first through the Tende Tunnel as original tunnel needs to be renovated
The tunnel was originally constructed by the Italians when the Tende area was fully within its borders
ProximaCentauri1/Shutterstock
A major road tunnel between France and Italy is set to reopen this summer after ten years of work.
The Tende tunnel, situated in the mountainous north of the Alpes-Maritimes department, has been closed since 2013 due to the construction of a second passage for vehicles.
It should reopen in June, said new French transport minister Philippe Tabarot in a visit to the site alongside his Italian compatriot Matteo Salvini.
Works should fully finish by the end of March when a testing period will begin.
This schedule update was also confirmed by Italian authorities in the Piedmont area, where the other entrance to the tunnel is located.
Traffic will initially run one-way – alternating between the countries – as work to modernise parts of the original 19th-Century tunnel will not begin before construction of the new tunnel is complete.
Until then, the old ‘tube’ cannot be used.
The Italian government announced €70 million towards the work, and said tenders will be sent out as soon as current works on the tunnel have finished.
Estimates are that these renovations will not be complete until 2027, with two-way traffic only possible after this.
Expanding cost of project
Renovations on the tunnel began in 2013, to add a second tube in the tunnel for two-way traffic and expand the length of the tunnel.
Prior to the 1947 Treaty of Paris, the tunnel was entirely within Italian territory, however France annexed this part of the local Tende area after World War Two.
Read more: French train station built by Mussolini looks to a brighter future
The project has been beset by delays and issues, which in turn have seen the cost of the project increase significantly.
Thieves stole over 200 tons of material from the building site in 2017, and Storm Alex in 2020 caused significant damage to the local area, culminating in access on the French side of the tunnel being cut off.
Read more: Storm Alex: Rebuilding goes on one year after valley floods near Nice
It means the cost of the project has ballooned from €170 million to over €250 million.
Around 41% of this was financed by the French government, as well as local authorities in the Alpes-Maritimes department and Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur region.
Read more: Ten months of limited service announced for major train route in south of France
