As of: March 29, 2024, 9:27 a.m
By: Richard Strobl
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Italy's panoramic streets attract thousands of visitors every year. (Collage from archive images) © Collage: IMAGO / Pond5 Images
Italy is defending itself against metal avalanches on picturesque panoramic routes in the country. Driving restrictions for cars are moving one step closer.
Rome – Picturesque green mountain meadows, azure sea behind mountain cliffs and romantic, dreamy coastal towns with colorful shutters. These impressions attract thousands of holidaymakers and day trippers to panoramic roads in Italy every year. The natural spectacle can then be observed from a motorcycle, car or bicycle. But nature has long been groaning under the sheer mass of visitors. People are now resisting this. Driving restrictions are being worked on.
The topic itself is not entirely new: there has been controversy over particularly congested areas for years. This also includes the roads on the Dolomite passes. Vehicles line up here almost every day and a kilometer-long avalanche of metal rolls through the idyll. In August 2022, a total of 4,160 vehicles were counted on the Sellajoch alone - every day, as
Der Standard
reports.
Italy is fighting against the flood of holidaymakers: panoramic roads are facing restrictions
This not only stresses the residents, but also the animals and plants in the region. That is why the “Low Emission Zone” project was started in South Tyrol, in Trento and Belluno as well as in Veneto. This is intended to drastically reduce the share of cars in traffic volume. Instead, more buses, cable cars and bicycles should take visitors over the passes in order to reduce noise and pollutants.
But the implementation seemed extremely difficult. Because: According to the Italian road traffic regulations, cross-regional tolls cannot be introduced on these same roads. Such taxes partially exist in Austria. But it is precisely these road traffic regulations that are now to be changed, which brings the project within reach.
At the first reading of the changes to the road traffic regulations in Italy's Chamber of Deputies, the possibility of setting up traffic restrictions in the form of so-called ZTLs ("Zone a traffico limitato") in areas that are designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites was actually granted. According to
Rai,
this was previously
only possible in Italy.
Iconic streets in Italy face restrictions
According to the change, there should still be no tolls on the affected roads. However, the regions can determine a contingent of vehicles that are allowed on the roads and thus reduce the mass. It's not just the Dolomite roads that are affected. The routes on the Amalfi Coast or near Cinque Terre in Liguria could also be allocated a quota.
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However, the change to the road traffic regulations has not yet been decided. The Chamber of Deputies did agree. But the Senate's go-ahead is still missing.
In general, Italy is struggling with the flood of visitors. Communities particularly affected have already responded. For example, the bed ban was introduced in South Tyrol. Venice has also already responded to the masses of tourists. And many smaller coastal towns have also introduced some adventurous rules.
(rist)