Austria, Italy agree on funding for railway tunnel through Alps

The agreement was included in a memorandum of understanding signed by the Austrian transportation minister, Werner Faymann, and his Italian counterpart, Antonio Di Pietro. The memorandum also foresees 2022 as a completion date. The Brenner Base Tunnel will have a length of about 56 kilometers (35 miles) — or 62 kilometers (39 miles) including a detour around the Austrian city of Innsbruck — and will link the north of the continent to its Mediterranean south.