Tunnelling Starts on Line 5 in MilanConstruction of the tunnels on the first section of Line 5 of the Milan metro officially began on 1st August, 2008. The section will run almost completely underground. The tunnel drive commenced from Bignami station and will carry on beneath Viale Fulvio to end in Viale Zara, where an interchange with Zara station on Line 3 will be provided. The opening of this first section is expected for February 2011 while the extension to Garibaldi station will be ready in April 2012. The Lovat TBM used to dig the tunnel was employed previously for one of the bores of the high speed twin tunnel in Bologna. Click here. The machine will work 24 hours and will progress at an advance rate of 10 m/day, alternating the excavation phase with the placement of the precast concrete rings. Behind the machine, the tunnel is practically completed, ready to be equipped with the tracks and all the necessary technical installations for the control and management of the line. The TBM and its back-up are more than 90 m long. The builder is Metro 5 SpA, the concession company headed by Astaldi associated with Torno Internazionale, Alstom, Ansaldo STS, Ansaldo Breda and ATM. Click here. Visit www.lovat.com and www.astaldi.comLine 5 of the Milan metro will stretch for 5.6 km, in majority below ground, and serve nine stations from Bignami Street to Garibaldi Square. It will be the first fully automatic line in Milan, remotely guided and controlled by a driverless system and managed from a control centre that will guarantee the continuous monitoring of the traffic and the status of the system thanks to a state-of-the-art computer system. The stations will be fitted with platform screen doors that isolate the platform from the tracks and trainsets. Extensions to both ends of the line under construction have been planned, to join the west suburbs of the city in San Siro (6.3 km, 11 stations) and the northeast suburbs in Monza (the final route has yet to be decided, four or five stations). Click here. The project is worth EUR553.6 million and is financed by a mix of public and private funds (60% and 40%). The city of Milan awarded Metro 5 SpA a 32-year concession for the construction and management of the line. Visit www.metro-5.comThe expansion of the metro system is a priority for the city council. The construction of the new line 5 represents an important step for Milan in the expansion of its metro system, which should be doubled both in the number of kilometres and lines by 2015 when Milan hosts the universal Expo "Feeding the planet, energy for life" from 1st May to 31st October. The city expects to draw 21 million visitors, of whom 27% from abroad. 38/08.