The doubling of the Telesina road is back in the spotlight in Benevento and the Sannio area after Domenico Parisi of the Lega described it as a strategic project and pointed to early 2027 for the laying of the foundation stone for the first lot.
Parisi called the project, in the words reported by NTR24, "Opera strategica, specchio di un impegno concreto per il territorio." The statement presents the start of works as a concrete milestone after years of waiting. The exact day construction will begin has not been established, and the early-2027 date should be read as a political forecast rather than confirmation that construction has started.
What has been announced
According to the NTR24 report, Parisi said the first lot is expected to begin with the foundation stone in early 2027. He cited 460 million euros in financing for a 25-kilometre, four-lane section between Benevento and San Salvatore Telesino.
The government response to a parliamentary question confirms that the first lot is fully financed. That response describes the upgrade of the SS 372 Telesina as a strategic national infrastructure project, divided into two lots, with final checks on the executive project for the first lot underway.
The Telesina upgrade concerns the SS 372 and is considered strategically important for connections between the Tyrrhenian and Adriatic areas.
The project in two lots
The overall intervention is divided into two functional lots:
- Benevento–San Salvatore Telesino
- Caianello–San Salvatore Telesino
The first lot, between Benevento and San Salvatore Telesino, is planned as a four-lane route and is described as fully financed. The NTR24 report puts the value at 460 million euros.
The second lot, between San Salvatore Telesino and Caianello, is further behind. According to the government response, it had advanced through the services conference and environmental compliance checks, but still required further project review, institutional approval and additional financing. The final financing timetable for that second section remains unspecified.
A map of the SS 372 Telesina corridor between Benevento and San Salvatore Telesino helps clarify why the distinction matters: residents and commuters will feel the benefits of the first lot first, while the full Caianello connection depends on later approvals and funds.
Why the date matters
The early-2027 forecast follows earlier announcements that had indicated work would begin by the end of 2026. The S.o.S. 372 committee said Anas had indicated a start by the end of 2026, while questioning whether the executive project had been approved and citing utility-interference issues.
Local civic representatives have highlighted repeated postponements of the start date and called for concrete, verifiable information on the work schedule. The sources differ in emphasis: the NTR24 report presents the 2027 start as a concrete milestone, while committee statements highlight repeated delays and unresolved procedural questions.
That gap explains why the foundation-stone announcement has drawn both attention and caution in Benevento.
What still has to happen
The government response indicates that the first lot has undergone contractual and design activity, while final checks and approvals on the executive project were still pending at the time of the response. The sources do not provide a newly approved executive-project document or a definitive construction commencement notice.
For readers following the project, three practical points are worth watching:
- Approval of the executive project for the Benevento–San Salvatore Telesino lot, including completion of the final checks mentioned by the government.
- Resolution of implementation issues raised locally, including utility interferences.
- A clear schedule and financing path for the San Salvatore Telesino–Caianello lot, including project review and institutional approvals.
Until those steps are documented, the timetable remains a forecast, not a worksite opening.
For now, the position is this: the first lot is financed and politically presented as ready to start in early 2027, the procedures for that start were still being finalised in the official response, and the second lot still needs further approval and funding. The next verifiable signal will not be another announced date, but approval documents and the actual start of construction.
