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    Polcevera ventilation tunnel: design and geotechnical notes for rail engineers

    June 30, 2026|

    Reviewed by Tom Sullivan

    Polcevera ventilation tunnel: design and geotechnical notes for rail engineers

    First reported on Geoengineer.org – News

    30 Second Briefing

    Excavation has been completed on the 2 km Polcevera ventilation tunnel, a key underground element of Italy’s Terzo Valico dei Giovi and Genoa Junction high-speed rail scheme between Genoa and the Milan–Turin corridor. Driven in complex Ligurian geology with multiple faulted rock masses and urban overburden, the tunnel will provide ventilation, emergency access and smoke extraction for the adjacent base tunnel system. Completion of this drive allows consolidation grouting, lining works and M&E installation to proceed on the critical northern section of the cross-Alps rail link.

    Technical Brief

    • Similar ventilation and safety tunnel concepts are being replicated on other Alpine base tunnel schemes for long high-speed links.

    Our Take

    A 2 km dedicated ventilation tunnel on the Genoa Junction railway project signals a high fire‑life‑safety design standard, which contractors will need to factor into long-term O&M strategies for both emergency access and routine maintenance in the main tunnels.

    For projects in constrained urban valleys such as around Genoa, standalone ventilation works like the Polcevera tunnel often become critical path items; similar cases in our database show that once these are in place, fit-out and systems integration on the main alignment typically accelerate.

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    Prepared by collating external sources, AI-assisted tools, and Geomechanics.io’s proprietary mining database, then reviewed for technical accuracy & edited by our geotechnical team.

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