The Strait of Messina Bridge will be “the biggest infrastructure project in the West,” Transport Minister Matteo Salvini told a news conference in Rome, after an interministerial committee with oversight of strategic public investments approved the project.

Salvini cited studies showing the project will create 120,000 jobs a year and accelerate growth in economically lagging southern Italy, as billions more in investments are made in roads and other infrastructure projects accompanying the bridge.

WeBuild constructed the Canakkale Bridge using the engineering model originally devised for the Messina bridge. It includes a wing profile and a deck shape that resembles a fighter jet fuselage with openings to allow wind to pass through the structure, according to WeBuild.

Addressing concerns about building the bridge over the Messina fault, which triggered a deadly quake in 1908, WeBuild has emphasised that suspension bridges are structurally less vulnerable to seismic forces.

It noted that such bridges have been built in seismically active areas, including Japan. Turkey and California.

WeBuild CEO Pietro Salini said in a statement that the Strait of Messina Bridge “will be transformative for the whole country.”