Upcoming Completion of Riva Tunnel Sparks Early Opening Prospects
It certainly emerges the observation that working rhythms are very intense, on the construction site operating within the bowels of Rocchetta, the mountain south of Riva heading towards Limone. The goal seems to be to complete this first phase of the works ahead of the scheduled contract date of July 27. Initially, it was considered reasonable that the opening date could be set around mid-next month.
Progress and potential early openings
Then, somewhat surprisingly and in close correlation with the visit to Trentino by the President of the Republic, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, a possible further change to the opening date has been hinted at, reported over a month ago by Bresciaoggi, which could even be moved up to July 8. Some responsible personnel on the site (the Collini and Oberosler company is working there) claim that they are doing their best.
The company has increased manpower and technology precisely to accelerate the (provisional) completion of the project, so that the ribbon-cutting by the president does not remain merely a symbolic gesture. In fact, as recently as yesterday, there was talk of separate moments: one is the official inauguration, the other is the actual use of the new tunnel, which may not coincide with the ribbon-cutting but could be delayed by a few days.
Final and temporary phases of the works
To prevent this from happening and to ensure that the celebration is followed by operational opening, every effort is being made, even if finishing works — which cost over 40 billion lire, much more than the amount spent on drilling the mountain — will still occur later, in the upcoming winter. The deferred completion of non-primary works had already been planned anyway.
Some engineers working inside the site consider it “probable” that this new tunnel could be opened as early as early July, with technical solutions making the gallery accessible: lighting, ventilation, and so on. But this will also require static verifications, system tests, material trials. All of this will be carried out with the involvement of specialized companies in the field of safety.
Road interventions and related issues
What is happening in the northern part of Lake Garda, just after crossing the border of our province and entering the Autonomous Province of Trento, raises other concerns. For example, a question mark concerns any additional road closures during a critical period of the season, such as July.
Unfortunately, it seems that motorists, tourists, and the highland operators will have to be patient for a few more days. The date? Ironically, it is set close to July 8, the day of the probable traffic opening of the Rocchetta tunnel.
The closure point will again be at Forbisicle, a locality where, about two weeks ago, mayors from the municipalities between Salò and Limone met to protest against the inconveniences caused by ongoing traffic closures. What will happen? For a few days (at least three), traffic will proceed intermittently to allow some remediation operations to conclude.
However, these will not be comparable to the hardships that have heavily stressed motorists in recent months, but rather short traffic pauses, generally limited to half an hour. The positive side? No further problems are expected during these summer months, and additional closures are to be avoided. Many precautions are being made.
