ITALY: The construction of a railway to the resort town of Cortina d’Ampezzo in the Dolomites is not viable, according to a study prepared by infrastructure manager RFI.
The project had been promoted by the Veneto Region and the Province of Belluno with aim of a relieving the roads.
In 2016 Veneto signed a framework agreement to study the feasibility of building a line from Calalzo-Pieve di Cadore-Cortina station to Cortina d’Ampezzo. The route was formerly served by the southern section of a 65 km long, 950 mm gauge line which was abandoned in the 1960s.
Almost 10 years after the project was proposed, RFI has said the project would require an investment of between €1·2bn and €1·5bn, more than double initial estimates, and take at least 10 years.
The geography is extremely challenging, journey times would be slow and some of the proposed stations at Tai, Valle, Venas, Vodo, Borca, San Vito and Zuel would be far from residential areas.
Demand is also predicted to be low; although Cortina is a major tourist destination there are strong seasonal peaks which make year-round statistical average planning difficult.
