The stoppage of high-speed trains between Italy and France is lengthening dramatically and was confirmed by the Prefect of Savoy, François Ravier, and the Regional Director of SNCF Reseau, French railway company.

Around 15,000 cubic meters of rock had collapsed onto the rail tracks and the motorway between Modane and Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne in August in the French Savoy region. Despite initial forecasts of an almost immediate recovery after the landslide, restoration work on the historic line has proven to be more complicated than expected and has yet to even begin.

Transalpine, the French association that promotes the Turin-Lyon, first indicated the date of a possible reopening for September 10, 2023, then for mid-November, and has now been postponed by at least 7 months. With TGV, France’s intercity high-speed rail service operated by SNCF, and Frecciarossa trains, operated by Tenitalia from Milan and Turin to Lyon and Paris, out of action, there is also a substantial increase in truck traffic on the roadways due to less operating freight trains.

“With the blocking of the TGV and Frecciarossa trains, as well as the 170 weekly freight trains active on the same line, it is easy to foresee serious repercussions for the territory, with a notable increase in road transport and consequent traffic congestion,” said Dario Gallina, President of the Turin Chamber of Commerce and of the ALPMED association, a small group of hospitality and tourism operators in the towns of Portofino, Santa Margherita Ligure, and Rapallo.

“All necessary efforts must be made to speed up the restoration work on the line, to resolve [this] problem not limited only to the French region involved, but with a strong impact on long journeys … between the two countries.” Traffic, however, is not the only cause for concern caused by the rail blackout between Italy and France.

According to TranzAlpine Train, the “ecological and economic consequences of such a long closure are difficult to measure and are expected to be serious.” For this reason, in view of the start of the winter season, the French authorities are organising a replacement bus service.

Train tourism is on the rise in Italy with more and more tourists choosing to travel by rail across Italy.