The high speed/capacity Naples-Bari line to relaunch the territory through sustainability and innovation

Naples, August 3, 2021 – With the positioning of the third bridge Webuild completes the construction operations of the three arch bridges on the Naples-Cancello section of the Naples-Bari high-speed/capacity railway line, commissioned by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (FS Italiane Group). Operations have now been completed for the third and last of the steel arched railway bridges, in the municipality of Acerra, thereby avoiding one of the main arteries of the local road network, with a state-of-the-art engineering solution that minimizes impacts on city traffic throughout the construction phase.

The Naples-Bari railway line is a strategic work for the enhancement of sustainability and high speed transport in Southern Italy. Once completed, it will almost half travel times between Naples and Bari, therefore bringing the North and South of Italy closer together. It represents an important opportunity of development: the Naples-Cancello and Apice-Hirpinia sections alone, currently under construction, provide employment for about 2,400 people including the related industries linked to a long chain of direct suppliers, who today consist of over 400 Italian companies, of which about 190 are from Southern Italy.

The last bridge positioned, just like the other two already placed in their final position in recent months, has a weight of 2,500 tons and is about 80 metres long with a height of 21 metres. The bridge was assembled on a specially built forecourt, alongside the operating road network and, with cutting-edge engineering solutions. It was raised about 6 metres from the street level, by means of lifting towers called strand jacks and jack ups. Subsequently, the bridge was taken over by 18 trailers, which distributed the weight on 104 wheeled axes and brought the bridge to its final position on its supports, in about 10 hours.

Webuild's commitment in Southern Italy dates back to the 1930s, with the creation as a Group of over 280 works. In Southern Italy, the Group is currently working on 15 major projects in the railway sector. In Sicily, it is also carrying out the doubling of the Palermo-Catania high-capacity railway line which includes the Bicocca-Catenanuova section, and of the one between Catania and Messina,  the Giampilieri-Fiumefreddo section (2nd Functional Lot Taormina-Giampilieri and 1st Functional Lot Fiumefreddo Taormina/Letojanni), the most recently awarded. Along the Naples-Bari high-speed line, the Group is currently involved in building four sections: the Naples-Cancello, affected by today's raising operations, to which must be added the Apice-Hirpinia, the Hirpinia-Orsara and the Orsara-Bovino ones, for a total of 74 kilometres of high-speed railway line.