Italy has approved a $15.5bn suspension bridge which will connect the mainland to the island of Sicily. Italy has given final approval to a long-delayed plan to construct the world’s longest suspension bridge, connecting the mainland to Sicily in a project worth €13.5bn ($15.5bn).

A long-delayed and debated span linking the Italian mainland with Sicily cleared a major hurdle Wednesday, allowing work to begin on what would be the world's longest suspension bridge.

Italy’s government was set on Wednesday to give the final approval to the multi-billion-euro project to build a bridge connecting Sicily to the mainland, paving the way for works to begin after decades of discussions.