Italy’s parliament has finally approved a plan to build the world’s longest suspension bridge between Sicily and the mainland, an area prone to 170 mph winds, powerful riptides and earthquakes.

This suspension bridge across the Strait of Messina will be 2.2 miles long and include two gigantic towers, each 100 feet taller than New York’s Empire State Building. The project could employ 100,000 people in the area and help revitalize Italy’s economically struggling south.

WSJ explains Italy’s technical plans for the bridge, and the engineering developments that may make it feasible.

Chapters:
0:00 Italy’s project
0:44 The problems
1:37 The bridge
2:53 The fault line challenge
3:55 The wind challenge

News Explainers
Some days the high-speed news cycle can bring more questions than answers. WSJ’s news explainers break down the day's biggest stories into bite-size pieces to help you make sense of the news.

#Italy #Megaprojects #WSJ