Contractor Webuild on Friday began recruitment for the Messina Strait Bridge, the world's longest suspension bridge, to link Sicily to the Italian mainland.
    Transport Minister Matteo Salvini said on September 24 that the government would provide answers to the Audit Court's "perplexities" over the Messina Bridge project and then work on the long-delayed structure would start, just behind schedule, later this year.
    The 13.5-billion-euro project was definitively approved by the CIPESS economic planning committee on August 6.
    Salvini said that the bridge should be in use in 2032 or 2033.
    The project includes the construction of a 3.3-kilometre suspension bridge, 40 kilometres of road and rail links, three new train stations and a business centre in Calabria.
    The project, which had been championed by late three-time premier and media mogul Silvio Berlusconi, had been set aside for decades due to its high cost, and concerns about its environmental impact, seismic risks and possible mafia infiltration - the first plans were drawn up over half a century ago.
    But is was revived by Salvini after the centre right's victory in the 2022 general election.
    Webuild said Friday that the project represents an "opportunity for thousands of jobs in Calabria and Sicily." "While awaiting the Court of Auditors' final decision," the company said, "we are accelerating our human resources efforts, focusing on training and hiring to build a team of professionals and young talent ready to contribute to a project that will change the face of Southern Italy and the entire country."
   

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © Copyright ANSA