The Buttaceto Viaduct will allow future trains travelling along the Bicocca-Catenanuova section of the Palermo-Catania line to pass over the river.
The construction of the section by Webuild for client Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) of Gruppo FS includes more than 300 direct suppliers – most of them local – and nearly 400 direct and indirect workers.
The Bicocca-Catenanuova section is part of a line that will connect Palermo and Catania in less than two hours.
The Buttaceto Viaduct measures approximately 62 metres in length and 750 tonnes in weight. The structure was assembled on site and then raised in place. With the use of hydraulic pistons, the viaduct’s deck was slid across reinforced concrete beams and steel supports by an approximately 20m a day until it reached the desired spot.
The manoeuvre has now been completed, with the deck resting at 10m above ground. The remaining work on the deck will be completed in the next few days so that, once completed, the viaduct will be ready to receive in the coming months the electrical and other fixtures for the new railway.
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