By ashleykaren
The new Facchini tunnel 1 was activated on 11 August. It is contained in the Terzo Valico dei Giovi – Genoa Junction Single Project route and built by the General Contractor directed by Webuild on behalf of Rete Ferroviaria Italiana, with the support of the engineering company Italferr, both firms of the Infrastructure Cluster of the FS Italiane Group.
The work is placed in the section of the railway line between the Fegino and Polcevera junctions of the Genoa junction, particularly in the last mile of accessing the Genoa Ports.
The renovation of the tunnel incorporated the entire demolition of the historical tunnel and the reconstruction of the new one, utilizing an innovative construction system used for the first time in the railway sector.
The widening works were advanced by a remote-controlled consolidation of the complete line using HDD (Horizontal Directional Drilling) technology which made a kind of protective cap for the excavations. Also, several holes were drilled at the top of the tunnel, from which special mixtures were injected to improve the stability of the ground. The tunnel widening works were undertaken by employing modern semi-automatic centering, which extensively decreased the underground work risks.
Another technical exception – constituting the installation of an avant-garde metal protection shell at the south side entrance of the tunnel, from the top of which all consolidation activities were carried out – made it possible to advance with the work in the initial phase while ensuring the concurrent movement of trains.
In the second phase, i.e., the last eight months, traffic had to be stopped so that building activities could continue non-stop with 24-hour shifts.
The new tunnel is 137 meters long, and its profile has been widened and adjusted to the transit of European standard goods trains (PC80/PMO3 gauge), in line with the development programs of the national railway infrastructure and the future connection with the Terzo Valico dei Giovi.
In addition, the Facchini Tunnel 1 reopening enables the re-establishment of freight train routes, which will return to operating the previous connection, freeing up the alternative one from Genoa through Ovada.
