Turin-Lyon rail link project divides Italy

ROME - An ambitious high-speed rail project designed to draw two of Europe's biggest countries closer is instead revealing divisions within Italy's eight-month-old government.

The planned rail link between the northern Italian industrial city of Turin and the eastern French city of Lyon, is part of a larger plan that will cross Europe with rail lines as a way to reduce transportation costs and fossil fuel use. The 270-kilometer line would include a 58-km tunnel under the Alps mountain range, one of the longest tunnels in the world. Trains will run at an average speed of 220 km/h.

According to Italian media reports, around one-seventh of the tunnel is complete, with drilling machines progressing at the rate of around 12 to 15 meters per day.

The project has been in development for generations. Turin and Lyon were first linked by rail via a mountain route opened in 1872. The line has been improved regularly, most recently in 2011, but topography still limits speed and weight loads. Plans for a high-speed alternative date back more than a quarter century.

"This project has very deep roots, with initial plans drawn up in the early 1990s," said Nicola Pasina, a political scientist at the University of Milan.

"There are many benefits to it, including making trade more efficient and cheaper, opening new markets in both countries and beyond, plus the environmental and health benefits of having fewer heavy trucks on the roads."

But now the 25 billion-euro ($28.5 billion) project is at risk due to the conflicting stances of the two parties backing the Italian government of Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, which has been in power since June 2018.

The nationalist League is in favor of the project, though some officials have said that Italy should rethink its financial obligation. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement, on the other hand, is against major public works projects in general, believing they can be breeding grounds for corruption.

According to a recent poll conducted by the survey firm SWG, around 6 in 10 supporters of the League backed the project, while less than half that percentage of Five Star Movement supporters held the same view. Overall, a little more than half of all Italians back the idea.

Major protests both against and in favor of the project have been held in Turin in recent weeks.

"Some leaders in the government say the costs of the project are higher than the benefits," said Stefano Cianciotta, president of the National Observatory on Infrastructure.

"Most observers disagree. But even if it were true it would be very difficult to find a good way to back out of a project like this once it has started."

Complicating things further are a series of clashes with France in recent months, ranging from name calling to political disagreements.

Xinhua