ANAS, the Italian national road administration, the Aosta valley autonomous region and SITRASB, the operator of the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel, signed on 22nd April, 2008 an annex to the agreement signed in 1998 related to the financing of the construction of a bypass road to the SS 27, from Etroubles to the motorway leading to the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel. The project concerns a bypass road encircling the communities of Etroubles and Saint-Oyen, currently crossed by trunk road SS 27 and therefore subject to intense vehicular traffic. The road is the unique connection between Aosta valley and Switzerland via the Grand Saint-Bernard cross-border tunnel. The Grand Saint-Bernard Pass is closed during the winter season.The bypass road requires the construction of two tunnels and a viaduct. A first 1.5 km tunnel will divert through traffic in Etroubles, then a 200 m double span viaduct will cross the Grand Saint-Bernard valley and then a second 2,658 m tunnel will bypass Saint-Oyen. The investment budgeted by ANAS in its 2007-2011 programme amounts to EUR128 million. By next May, SITRASB will prepare the final project, financed up to EUR122,000 by the Aosta region, in accordance with the European directive on safety in tunnels. Then tenders will be invited. Click here. Collegarsi a www.sitrasb.it 18/08.Restricted invitation to tender, deadline 1st September, 2008 for design and construction of the 2.9 km Saint-Oyen bypass on road SS 27 to the Gran San Bernardo pass. The contract includes a 2,658 m single bore tunnel to bypass the town of Saint-Oyen. It is part of a road upgrade between Etroubles and the Gran San Bernardo cross-border tunnel, divided in two separate tenders: the Saint-Oyen bypass (lot I) and the Etroubles bypass (lot II), which will require a 1.5 km bored tunnel. The new Saint-Oyen bypass will improve mobility in the Gran San Bernardo valley to Switzerland, thus developing cross-border ties. The existing SS 27 road to the Gran San Bernardo is very sinuous with steep gradients. It is a single carriageway with one lane per direction. It is the unique communication link from the Gran San Bernardo tunnel to Aosta and vice versa. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=177151-2008, or contact ANAS, Rome, fax +39 0644462009. E-mail r.memoli@stradeanas.it 30/08.