The Mont Blanc Tunnel reopens tonight

After more than 4 months of work, the main road connecting France and Italy reopens tonight at 10:00 PM.

What must have felt so long for our road friends. The Mont Blanc Tunnel has been completely closed to traffic since Monday, September 2, 2024, for vault renovation. This 15-week closure allowed for the first experimental renovation project on two vault segments of 300 meters each, totaling 600 meters. This period was chosen in collaboration with the prefectures of Haute-Savoie and the Aosta Valley, as autumn is considered the least impactful period for tourism, especially for light vehicles. In fact, they are the primary users of the tunnel, accounting for 68% of traffic in 2023. The barriers will lift for the first vehicles at 10:00 PM, just after the annual safety exercise organized under the auspices of the French and Italian prefectural authorities, involving over 100 participants from both countries.

But why renovate the vault? The Mont Blanc Tunnel is 60 years old, and these works are meant to ensure its continued longevity. It is the first among major European tunnels to undertake deep structural renovation work with large-scale civil engineering tasks. Lessons learned from the renovation techniques that will be used in 2024 will inform the 2025 renovation, which will cover an additional 600 meters of vault. Knowing that the tunnel is 11,611 meters long, it becomes clear that this venerable infrastructure is only at the beginning of its rejuvenation. This first phase cost 24 million euros, but given the tunnel’s importance, no one will mind the expense.

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