Another TBM completed for Sicilian railway
5 April 2024The first of the five TBMs that will excavate Lot 3 Lercara-Caltanissetta Xirbi of Sicily’s Palermo-Catania railway has completed the Factory Acceptance test in China.
The EPBM has a diameter of 9.32m.
Lot 3 involves the detailed design and construction of 47km of new railway line, with the route mostly a variant from the historic line. The contract includes the construction of about 22km of tunnels (including interconnections), more than 11km of rail and road viaducts, 32km of connected roads, and the modernisation of Vallelunga station.
In December last year, two TBMs for Lot 4B (New Enna-Dittaino) passed their Factory Acceptance Test and are now being shipped to Sicily from China Railway Construction Heavy Industry (CRCHI).
The Lercara-Caltanissetta Xirbi section is part of Rete Ferroviaria Italiana’s (RFI) wider programme to modernise the Palermo-Catania-Messina railway.
