ABSTRACT
The two single track railway tunnels of Ponte Gardena along Fortezza-Verona High Speed line (North of Italy) are designed to be excavated by EPB-TBM. Its alignment runs on the left bank of the Isarco River. Combined interpretation of geological and geotechnical data led to crucial information during the design process, allowing a deeper knowledge on the geomorphological complexity of the area. These studies together with the contribution of the satellite radar monitoring technique permitted to define the borders of a large-scale landslide through thick debris deposits overlying a fractured rock basement. The railway alignment was optimized to prevent any influence of the tunnel construction on the landslide. Based on the new track layout, design solutions were carried out to solve the interaction issues related to the underpassing of an existing main road and to mitigate effects produced by the tunnel excavation. Specific numerical analyses were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the selected design choices.
