The Garda Cycle Path was the focus of discussion during the Riva del Garda City Council meeting held on Tuesday, March 26. The President of the Autonomous Province of Trento, Maurizio Fugatti, along with the extraordinary commissioner Francesco Misdaris and other institutional representatives, participated in the session to discuss the project involving Trentino, Veneto, and Lombardy.
During the evening, President Fugatti emphasized the importance of the Garda Cycle Path as a response to the demands from the territory. He also recalled the political decision made in 2019 to proceed with the project after the completion of the Limone section. Fugatti highlighted that once completed, the cycle path will represent an added value for the whole of Trentino and expressed willingness to listen to proposals to improve its route.
During the meeting, the technical details of the project were presented, with particular attention to functional unit 3.1, which is the connection with Limone that has recorded approximately 2 million crossings since 2018. Geologist Claudio Valle illustrated the geological and engineering studies conducted on various sections of the project, emphasizing the focus on the sustainability of the adopted solutions.
General Manager Luciano Martorano highlighted that the construction of the different functional units will also involve the construction of rockfall barriers to improve the safety of SS 45 bis. Commissioner Misdaris explained that for functional unit 3, evaluations are underway to accompany certain sections alongside the roadbed in order to limit protruding sections with coverings. Finally, Director Sergio Deromedis highlighted the maintenance costs of the project, estimated to be between 8,000 and 8,500 euros per kilometer per year, but also emphasized the economic impact generated by cycle tourism, which amounts to around seventy million euros per year.
The current status of the Garda Cycle Path works in the Trentino section is as follows:
– Functional Unit (UF) 1.2: Ponale Underpass – Orione Gallery, with a project cost of 9.6 million euros and expected completion in July 2025.
– UF 2: Orione Gallery – Ponale Mouth, with a project cost of 10.3 million euros and expected completion in August 2026.
– UF 3.1: Lombardy Border – Limniadi Gallery, with a project cost of 2.6 million euros and expected completion in September 2024.
– UF 3.2: Limniadi Gallery – Gola Location, with a project cost of 7 million euros and expected completion in March 2026.
– UF 3.3: Gola Location – Titans Gallery, with a project cost of 5.8 million euros and expected completion in February 2026.
– UF 3.4: Titans Gallery – Ponale Mouth, with a project cost of 24 million euros and expected completion in December 2026.
– UF 3.5 (additional functional unit): Safety measures for the rock walls above the entire UF 3 section, with a project cost of 5.3 million euros and expected completion in November 2025.
– UF18: Torbole Center – Riva del Garda, currently under construction with a project cost of 4.2 million euros.
– UF19: Torbole – Nago, currently under construction with a project cost of 3.9 million euros.
The total cost of the section entrusted to the extraordinary commissioner for the west bank amounts to approximately 61.7 million euros, which becomes 69 million when considering the already completed parts. These amounts should be added to the costs related to functional units 18 and 19.
