Turin-Lyon is a railway line for freight and passengers located in the heart of the Mediterranean Corridor (of the TEN-T trans-European network).
It connects the Iberian Peninsula to Eastern Europe, passing through Italy with the Turin–Trieste route.
Central to the new line is the cross-border section that, at 65 kilometres-long, goes from Susa to Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, in France, and crosses the Alps thanks to the Mont Cenis tunnel.
As follows the main goals of the project: control road transport and promote alternative modes of transport on the Italian-French border (given that transalpine goods traffic has doubled over the last 30 years); encourage commercial exchanges along the Italo-French axis with the European TEN-T network through the Mont Cenis tunnel; strengthen Turin's railway freight hub; develop the underground (metro) service in the city, with neighbouring territories and the airport for passenger traffic.
Bussoleno–Avigliana, Avigliana–Orbassano, Orbassano Freight Terminal
The technological and infrastructural upgrading of the Avigliana–Bussoleno section is part of a broader project to upgrade the conventional Turin–Bardonecchia–Modane line. This includes the installation of a new spacing system, the elimination of level crossings along the tract, the renewal of the electrical traction systems and the upgrading of the tracks to accommodate trains up to 750 metres in length.
The most important project
Mont Cenis base tunnel (57.5 km)
*150 years after the inauguration of the Fréjus tunnel, this tunnel transforms the current mountain line into a level ground line, adapting it to current European standards.
Economic investment and timescale of the cross-border section of the Turin-Lyon Line
Economic investment: € 8.6 billion, cost-certified by a third party. 40% of the amount is co-financed by the European Union, while the remainder is divided between the two countries (35% for Italy, 25% for France).
Start of construction of the base tunnel: 2018
End of construction: 2029
Economic investment and timescale of the Italian access lines
Economic investment of the first phase of the strengthening of the access lines: €1.9 billion
Regarding Turin citizens traveling by rail, in 2021 the new SFM5 railway line is expected to start running.
End of construction: 2029
For the environment
The cost-benefit analysis conducted on the Turin-Lyon line, published in 2012, estimated:
- The annual reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of approximately 3 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents
- The transfer of one million heavy goods vehicles from road to rail.
89% of the cross-border route is through the tunnel, while most of the instalments on the surface are located in already built-upon areas, effectively eliminating the consumption of virgin soil.
