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Italy's controversial leap across the Strait of Messina

Final approval for a colossal project was given in August by the Italian government. The project responds to the concept of a bridge over the Strait of Messina, with a budget of €13.5 billion and a construction period of ten years. The result upon completion will be the largest suspension bridge in the world. For Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the project is an “investment in Italy’s present and future”; but for Matteo Salvini, it is “the largest infrastructure project in the West.” .

The bridge will connect Sicily, with one end in Messina and the other in Calabria, in the small town of Villa San Giovanni. The total length of the suspension bridge will be 3.7 kilometers, with the central span reaching 3.3 kilometers. Designed to be supported by two pillars approximately 400 meters high, the bridge will have three lanes in each direction and two railway lines in the center. According to the government, the aim is to transform the current water barrier into a “fast transit corridor.”

The bridge will connect Sicily, with one end in Messina and the other in Calabria, in the small town of Villa San Giovanni. The total length of the suspension bridge will be 3.7 kilometers, with the central span reaching 3.3 kilometers. Designed to be supported by two pillars approximately 400 meters high, the bridge will have three lanes in each direction and two railway lines in the center. According to the government, the aim is to transform the current water barrier into a “fast transit corridor.”

Behind the bridge, however, as an engineering project, it seems that the issue divides rather than unites — as the nature of a project like this promises, causing political and social upheaval. The new role that Meloni is claiming as a political leader is being questioned by concerns about the real benefits to local communities, the environmental cost, and the possibility that the project could turn into a source of corruption in southern Italy. 

However, behind the grandiose statements, the project has already caused a political and social uproar. Promises of development are being challenged by questions about the real benefits to local communities, the environmental damage it may leave behind, and the risk of it becoming yet another mechanism for corruption and clientelism in southern Italy. Before the bridge can be built, preliminary work must be completed, such as mine clearance, geotechnical studies, archaeological research, and local road interventions. According to Webuild and the Eurolink consortium, this work must begin by the end of 2025. At the same time, the preparation of the executive plan will take at least two years and will have to incorporate 62 new environmental conditions set by the competent committee. At the same time, the European Commission is examining whether the project complies with the Habitat Directive and biodiversity protection legislation, the Italian government has already submitted an environmental impact assessment, but Brussels has not yet given the green light.

 

The historical cycle of the project itself was a dream of Italy from the Romans to Mussolini and Berlusconi to the present day, elevating the project to a symbol rather than a mechanical construction. Consequently, the project is the new battleground between two different visions for Italy’s future: on the one hand, the promotion of an image of grandeur and power capable of enhancing the country’s international profile; on the other, the pursuit of a different model of development, which prioritises the daily needs of the citizens of the South.

Especially when one considers that issues directly related to the local community remain unresolved. An example being the issue of expropriations, with 150 buildings scheduled for demolition in Villa San Giovanni alone, and 250 in the Torre Faro area of Messina. So far, hundreds of owners have already submitted questions about the future of their properties. It is more than certain that this issue will proceed with legal appeals and serious delays in the completion of the project. The statement by 75-year-old Mariolina de Francesco is indicative of the situation: she says that she will not leave her home, even if she is offered triple compensation. “What matters is the landscape,” providing another dimension, that of value, not economic value, a dimension related to the protection of natural and cultural heritage.

The government, of course, insists on presenting the bridge as the driving force behind a new economic boom for southern Italy, which will create up to 120,000 jobs a year and put an end to Sicily’s physical and economic “isolation.” The “productive” capacity of the project is also supported by Webuild CEO Pietro Salini, who speaks of a “transformation of the entire country” and a construction project that will make Italy a global benchmark in engineering.

Furthermore, political criticism regarding jobs concerns their status, i.e. how many of them will be permanent and how many temporary, while the real existential question of the South remains unanswered, because the question concerns long-standing deficiencies, since any answer to the question of whether a bridge, even if it is a technical marvel, can respond to the long-standing deficiencies in schools, hospitals, and transportation networks that continue to plague Sicily and Calabria seems rather inadequate — especially when one considers that in 2011, a less expensive plan was rejected by Parliament. Any answer seems rather inadequate, especially when one considers that in 2011, a less expensive project was canceled by Parliament due to concerns about its cost ($5.5 billion) and necessity.

The bridge case: by whom and for whom

Although the bridge is presented as an engineering marvel, critics point out that it will be built in one of the most earthquake-prone areas in Europe, recalling that the deadly 1908 earthquake in Messina claimed the lives of more than 80,000 people. The bridge’s designers claim that the structure will withstand even “biblical-scale” earthquakes, but environmental organizations and engineers have expressed doubts about whether such a massive structure can really stand on such unstable ground.

The unstable terrain is also a way of describing the social situation in the region, due to the long-standing fear of the mafia. Since the 1960s, any discussion of the project has been accompanied by warnings that the Sicilian Cosa Nostra and the Calabrian ‘Ndrangheta will try to infiltrate the construction sites, supplies, and subcontracting networks, while any promises to protect the project from this kind of corruption seem more like a simple acknowledgment of the risk. In this regard, Salvini stated that “monitoring the supply chain will be the raison d’être of the government,” and in the same vein, the President of the Republic made it clear that the project should be subject to the strictest provisions of anti-mafia legislation. Moreover,on August 9, more than 10,000 protesters in Messina chanted “No Ponte” and “Lo Stretto non si tocca,” signaling an escalation of resistance. In Calabria, the summer campaign of No Ponte — with strong participation from young people — turned the slogan into an electoral “red line” ahead of the regional elections.

Beyond the other direct or indirect contenders for the project, it appears that the Meloni administration attempted months ago to promote the bridge both domestically and internationally as a project of strategic importance, as a NATO bridge. Antonio Tajani and Matteo Salvini, the two vice-presidents of the government, are trying to give the project a military dimension so that the cost can be recorded in NATO’s accounts as part of defense spending, helping Italy to approach its target of 5% of GDP. According to an April government document, the bridge was described as a “key element of national and international security” on the grounds that it would allow the rapid transport of troops and heavy vehicles from Northern Europe to the Mediterranean, turning the Strait into a new military corridor. However, the idea that such a controversial project could be “baptised” a military investment provoked rather amusement even among allies, with US officials smilingly avoiding any comment at the NATO summit in The Hague.

Which Italy will this bridge unite?

At the end of the day, the Messina Bridge seems more like a hub where promises of development, defense objectives, and attempts at corruption meet as a living ghost of the mafia’s past. The €13.5 billion project, scheduled for completion in 2032–33, promises faster connections and prestige for Rome, but at the same time faces scrutiny from the Corte dei Conti, European environmental oversight, and massive expropriations, as well as ongoing protests in the Strait.

The contradictions are more than apparent: on the one hand, the government talks about “transformation” and tens of thousands of jobs, while on the other, environmental concerns and the seismic risks of the Strait remain at the forefront. At the same time, in the shadows, the fear of mafia infiltration persists, to which the state leadership itself responds with announcements of “anti-mafia protection,” an admission of the danger. Moreover,on August 9, more than 10,000 protesters in Messina chanted “No Ponte” and “Lo Stretto non si tocca,” signaling an escalation of resistance. In Calabria, the summer campaign of No Ponte — with strong participation from young people — turned the slogan into an electoral “red line” ahead of the regional elections.

Institutionally, nothing is set in stone: the legality check by the Corte dei Conti, the 62 new environmental conditions in the executive plan, and the announced appeals make for a messy legal situation that’s getting worse with the expropriations and the uncertainty of local communities.

Perhaps that is why the final question is not whether the bridge can be built, but which parts of Italy it connects. Does the final composition concern an Italy of spectacle and circumvention or an Italy of public value and accountability? In the Strait of Messina, the rift is not only tectonic, it is political and social, and it remains to be seen which side will bridge it. 

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