Overview
- The two main tunnel tubes were joined Tuesday at a point 1,408 metres below the Brenner pass when Italian and Austrian crews met at the state border, marking the end of the main drives.
- South Tyrol officials say all roughly 230 kilometres of the tunnel system, including rescue and access galleries, have now been excavated.
- The project now moves into the complex phase of installing tracks, power supply, signalling and safety systems that must be harmonised between Austria and Italy before trains can run.
- The planned 2032 in‑service date and the reported cost of about €10.5 billion remain provisional, and Germany's unresolved northern approach — with route, financing and local opposition still pending in the Bundestag — could delay full corridor benefits into the 2040s.
- Once finished, the tunnel will cut Munich–Verona travel by about two hours and allow heavier, faster freight trains to shift traffic from road to rail, reducing valley congestion and local pollution.