High-speed rail line Brescia - Verona

One of Europe’s most thriving industrial regions, consisting of a close-knit network of manufacturing districts, stretches between Turin and Trieste in Italy. This industrial heartland was built through the remarkable willpower of Italian entrepreneurs who – since the end of the Second World War – have created high-tech-oriented companies serving prestige sectors, like: automotive, pharmaceutical and agri-food.

This remarkable success was achieved despite a lack of good infrastructure, which arrived late compared to other European regions. Once completed, the new high-speed/high-capacity (HS/HC) railway line will connect Turin to Trieste, bringing in modern, sustainable mobility and shifting the transport of people and goods from road to rail. This will not only reduce traffic congestion. It lays the groundwork for a greener future with less use of polluting technologies.

The HS/HC rail line is an integral part of the Mediterranean Core Corridor connecting Northern Italy with the Iberian Peninsula and Eastern European countries. “This great transport line will allow people and goods to travel from Spain to Ukraine, crossing Southern France, Northern Italy, Slovenia and Croatia – offering a unique development opportunity for our country,” said Mario Lembo, Operations Manager North Italy, Calcestruzzi.

The project was commissioned by the Italian Railway Network (RFI), and Italferr is responsible for supervision and construction management. Both companies belong to the Italian State Railways Group. The general contractor appointed for the works is the Cepav due consortium.

The segment being built currently, around 48 kilometres along the edge of the Po Valley, will link the two cities of Brescia and Verona. The HS/HC railway line will run on embankments, bounded at the sides by retaining walls, passing through a tunnel system under the A4 motorway in Lonato del Garda and resurfacing on the Southern side of the motorway.

The project is interesting not only for its technology – respecting the environment is also a top priority for the Cepav due consortium. With the implementation of an environmental management system meeting the UNI EN ISO14001/15 standard, the consortium is committed to maximising reuse of the excavated materials as well as assessing and managing the environmental impact caused by the works, removing waste and restoring the areas disturbed by construction.

“Building today requires the utmost respect for the environment, considering the area where the construction site is located and carefully looking at the supply chain for raw materials and semi-finished products,” said Andrea Zecchini. “Favouring local products reduces the emissions connected with long transports. Such an all-encompassing perspective is fundamental for modern infrastructure construction.”

All construction materials are chosen with the utmost care: supplies delivered to the construction sites undergo a strict approval process based on technical and sustainability criteria in order to minimise environmental impacts along the entire supply chain. Accordingly, Cepav due has engaged only cement and concrete suppliers that hold the strictest environmental certificates, choosing – among others – cement from Italcementi’s plant in Calusco d’Adda and concrete produced by the plants of Concrete Italia in Montichiari and Lonato del Garda to build the structures cast on site.

“Both HeidelbergCement subsidiaries are delivering their best products in terms of durability, performance and technical specifications, while contributing to a reduced carbon footprint of the construction site,” concludes Andrea Zecchini.