The Brenner pass is the most important North-South connection between Italy and Northern Europe. The Brenner railway and the Brenner highway run along the Brenner Corridor. On one hand these important transport axes reached their capacity limits and on the other hand the local population and the regional authorities urge to achieve a modal shift from road to rail. Indeed, in the last 70 years the first real studies on the construction of a base tunnel were carried out. The following article offers a general overview on the project and the structures completed up today as well as the work progress. Conclusions The construction of the Brenner Base Tunnel is progressing according to the construction programme. Between Italy and Austria, so far about 15,5 km of exploratory tunnels, 4,5 km of access tunnels for the intermediate access shafts and logistics and the first 160 m of the main tunnels have been built. On the basis of the acquired data from the construction of the exploratory tunnel, the project can progress efficiently and the further tender procedures can be carried out. In spite of the current European economic crisis, the European Union strongly believes in the development of the corridor connecting Berlin to Palermo; the Brenner Base Tunnel, which is the centrepiece of this corridor and its construction has been awarded to the European Company Galleria di Base del Brennero - Brenner Basis Tunnel BBT SE, coparticipated by Italy and Austria, under the supervision of the European Union. At the current stage this project is one of the most advanced of the priority projects identified and financed by the European Union within the infrastructure programme TEN-T.