ABSTRACT
Historical Tunnels in Italy are normally called the ones built between 1850 and 1940. They were excavated according to different methods, among which the Italian one, and they exhibit a final masonry lining composed by stone blocks, in the bottom part, red bricks at top heading, or, alternatively, red bricks for the whole lining. Most of these tunnels, still in service, are railway tunnels. There are many reasons why railway companies decide to refit historical tunnels: the paper, after a brief historical overview of tunneling methods applied for construction of historical tunnel in Italy, examines the main reasons for their maintenance, proposes a design flow-chart and then presents its practical application to two case histories, showing refitting technical solutions, together with the verification methods compliant to the newest codes of practice in tunnel construction.
