Florence high-speed railway underpass – Preservation of the Italian Renaissance pre-existing structures and historical sites

A high-speed railway underpass in Florence, designed to accommodate growing mobility demands while preserving Renaissance-era structures, demonstrates the feasibility of integrating modern infrastructure with UNESCO World Heritage Site protection. The project involved tunneling beneath 230 buildings, including iconic sites like Fortezza da Basso (1535) and Opificio delle Pietre Dure (1340), using pre-consolidation grouting to mitigate subsidence-induced damage. For structures in Piazza della Libertà, real-time monitoring of excavated material and subsidence was prioritized over pre-emptive interventions. The study highlights the effectiveness of targeted geotechnical strategies—such as compensation grouting and dynamic monitoring—in safeguarding historical integrity during large-scale underground construction.

Zurlo, R., & Sorbello, R. (2022). Florence high-speed railway underpass – Preservation of the Italian Renaissance pre-existing structures and historical sites. Geotechnical Engineering for the Preservation of Monuments and Historic Sites III, 977–988. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781003308867-76