<Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (October 2011) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> The Strait of Messina Bridge is a long - planned suspension bridge across the Strait of Messina, a narrow section of water between the eastern tip of Sicily and the southern tip of mainland Italy, specifically between north Messina's Torre Faro and Villa San Giovanni . In 2006, under Prime Minister Romano Prodi, the project was cancelled . However, on 6 March 2009, as part of a massive new public works programme, Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government announced that construction of the Messina Bridge would indeed go ahead, pledging € 1.3 billion as a contribution to the bridge's total cost, estimated at € 6.1 billion . The bridge would have been the longest suspension bridge in the world, almost doubling the main span of the Akashi - Kaikyo in Japan . The bridge would have been part of the Line 1 of Trans - European Transport Networks (TEN - T). Citing budget constraints, the project was cancelled again on 26 February 2013, by Prime Minister Mario Monti's government . </P> <P> The Strait of Messina is a funnel - shaped arm of sea that connects the Ionian Sea in the south to the Tyrrhenian Sea to the north . The width of the strait varies from a maximum of approximately 16 km (9.9 miles) (between Capo d'Alì in Sicily and Punta Pellaro in Calabria) to a minimum of approximately 3 km (1.9 miles) between Capo Peloro in Sicily and Torre Cavallo in Calabria . A similar distance separates Pezzo and Ganzirri; at that point, the strait is only 72 m (236 ft) deep, while in other places it can reach 200 m (660 ft) deep . It is also characterised by strong currents . </P> <P> The idea of a bridge crossing the strait is an old one . The Romans considered building a bridge joining Calabria and Sicily made of boats and barrels . Charlemagne considered joining the two sides with a series of bridges . This idea was revived by the Norman adventurer Robert Guiscard in the 11th century and by Roger II of Sicily in the 12th century . In 1876, Giuseppe Zanardelli was convinced that the strait could be linked by either a bridge or a tunnel . In 1866, public works minister Stefano Jacini gave Alfredo Cottrau, an internationally recognised engineer, the task of drawing up plans for a bridge between Calabria and Sicily . Later, in 1870, Navone proposed building a tunnel based on Napoleon's idea of a tunnel under the English Channel . This tunnel was to start at Contesse and was to pass below Messina and Ganzirri at a depth of 150 m, crossing the Strait to Punta Pezzo and resurfacing at Torre Cavallo . </P>

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