by InTrieste
The Passo di Monte Croce Carnico reopened permanently on Friday, 22 May, restoring traffic between Italy and Austria more than a year after a landslide on December 1, 2023, severed the cross-border route.
The works on the SS52-bis Carnica, a national road managed by Anas, cost about €20 million, half of which was financed by the Friuli Venezia Giulia regional government. The project included controlled demolitions of unstable rock, reconstruction of damaged sections of roadway, extension of rockfall protection galleries, and the installation of a new monitoring and safety system designed to reduce future landslide risk.
Cristina Amirante, the regional councillor for infrastructure and territory, said during a site visit in Paluzza that the intervention had significantly improved safety conditions along the mountain pass. She thanked Anas for its work on the project.
Amirante said the region would continue to work on long-term safety solutions, noting that landslide risks remain a recurring challenge in the area. She added that discussions with the Austrian region of Carinthia are ongoing to identify a shared strategy and secure funding for future infrastructure.
Among the options under consideration are a roughly 4.5-kilometer tunnel through the mountain or an alternative road alignment on the opposite slope. Regional authorities and local business groups favor the tunnel, which they describe as a more modern and safer long-term solution, particularly in terms of maintenance and resilience.
Amirante noted that similar tunnel infrastructure already exists in the Valcellina area, adding that while the project would not be “faraonic,” it would require significant investment and would be essential to strengthening the Italy–Austria connection.
