HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
has a well developed
transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...
infrastructure. The Italian rail network is extensive (), especially in the north, and it includes a
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail transport network utilising trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated railway track, tracks. While there is ...
network that joins the major cities of Italy from
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
through northern cities such as
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
and
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
. The Florence–Rome high-speed railway was the first high-speed line opened in Europe when more than half of it opened in 1977. Italy has 2,507 people and 12.46 km2 per kilometer of rail track, giving Italy the world's 13th largest rail network.Compare
List of countries by rail transport network size This is a sortable list of countries by rail transport network size based on length of rail lines. Definition For the purposes of this page, railway has been defined as a fixed route laid with rails along which wagons can be transported. Wago ...
.
The Italian rail network is operated by state-owned
Ferrovie dello Stato Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. (; ; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the initialism FS) is Italy's national state-owned enterprise, state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estate service ...
, while the
rail tracks Railway track ( and UIC terminology) or railroad track (), also known as permanent way () or "P way" ( and Indian English), is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers ( railroad ties in American ...
and infrastructure are managed by
Rete Ferroviaria Italiana Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) is the Italian railway infrastructure manager, subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS), a state-owned holding company. RFI is the owner of Italy's railway network, it provides signalling, maintenance an ...
. Italy's paved road network is also widespread, with a total length of about . It comprises both an extensive
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
network Network, networking and networked may refer to: Science and technology * Network theory, the study of graphs as a representation of relations between discrete objects * Network science, an academic field that studies complex networks Mathematics ...
(), mostly
toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...
s, and national and local roads. Italy was the first country in the world to build
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s, the so-called ''
autostrade The ''autostrade'' (; : ''autostrada'', ) are roads forming the Italy, Italian national system of motorways. The total length of the system is about , as of 30 July 2022. There are also 13 motorway spur routes, which extend for . Most of the ...
'', reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only. The ''
Autostrada dei Laghi The Autostrada A8 or Autostrada dei Laghi ('Lakes motorway') is an ''autostrada'' (Italian for 'motorway') long in Italy located in the region of Lombardy connecting Milan to Varese (on the Lake of Varese) and connecting Milan to Gallarate an ...
'' ("Lakes Motorway"), the first built in the world, connecting
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
to
Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...
and
Lake Maggiore Lake Maggiore (, ; ; ; ; literally 'greater lake') or Verbano (; ) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. The lake and its shoreline are divided be ...
, and now parts of the A8 and A9 motorways, was devised by
Piero Puricelli Piero Puricelli (born 4 April 1883 in Milan - died 8 May 1951 in Milan), Count of Lomnago, was an Italian engineer and politician in the first half of the 20th century who was responsible for the ideation, in Italy, of the first motorways in the ...
and was inaugurated in 1924. The Strade Statali is the Italian national network of
state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...
s. The total length for this network is about . The routes of some state highways derive from ancient
Roman roads Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...
, such as the Strada statale 7 Via Appia, which broadly follows the route of the Roman road of the same name. Italy is the fifth in Europe by number of passengers by air transport, with about 148 million passengers or about 10% of the European total in 2011. In 2012 there were 130 airports in Italy, including the two hubs of
Malpensa International Airport Milan Malpensa Airport "Silvio Berlusconi" is an international airport in Ferno, in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is the largest airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria, as well as the Swiss canton of T ...
in Milan and Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Rome. Since October 2021, Italy's
flag carrier A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by that government for international operations. Histo ...
airline is
ITA Airways Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A. (), doing business as ITA Airways, is the flag carrier of Italy. It is owned by the government of Italy, via the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and Lufthansa Group. The airline was founded in 2020 as a suc ...
, which took over the brand, the IATA ticketing code, and many assets belonging to the former flag carrier
Alitalia Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. ...
, after its bankruptcy. The country also has
regional airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...
s (such as
Air Dolomiti Air Dolomiti S.p.A. L.A.R.E (''Linee Aeree Regionali Europee'') is an Italian regional airline, wholly-owned by Lufthansa. It is a member of Lufthansa Regional and has its head office in Dossobuono, Villafranca di Verona. Its main bases are at Mu ...
), low-cost carriers, and Charter and leisure carriers (including Neos,
Blue Panorama Airlines Blue Panorama Airlines S.p.A. was an Italian airline headquartered in Fiumicino operating scheduled and charter flights mostly to domestic and international leisure destinations. As of late 2021, the airline was in the process to change its bran ...
and Poste Air Cargo). Major Italian cargo operators are ITA Airways Cargo and Cargolux Italia. Because of its long seacoast, Italy also has many harbors for the transportation of both goods and passengers. In 2004 there were 43 major seaports including the
Port of Genoa The Port of Genoa is one of the most important seaports in Italy. With a trade volume of 51.6 million tonnes, it is the busiest port of Italy after the port of Trieste by cargo tonnage. Notably the port was used for dismantling the ''Costa Conco ...
, the country's largest and the third busiest by cargo tonnage in the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
. Due to the increasing importance of the maritime
Silk Road The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...
with its connections to Asia and East Africa, the Italian ports for Central and
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
have become important in recent years. In addition, the trade in goods is shifting from the European northern ports to the ports of the Mediterranean Sea due to the considerable time savings and environmental protection. In particular, the deep water port of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
in the northernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea is the target of Italian, Asian and European investments.Marcus Hernig: Die Renaissance der Seidenstraße (2018) pp 112.Bernhard Simon: Can The New Silk Road Compete With The Maritime Silk Road? in The Maritime Executive, 1 January 2020. Transport networks in Italy are integrated into the
Trans-European Transport Networks The Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) is a planned network of roads, railways, airports and water infrastructure in the European Union. The TEN-T network is part of a wider system of Trans-European Networks (TENs), including a telecommun ...
.


Railways

The Italian rail network is extensive, especially in the north, and it includes a
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail transport network utilising trains that run significantly faster than those of traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated railway track, tracks. While there is ...
network that joins the major cities of Italy from
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
through northern cities such as
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
and
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
. Italy has 2,507 people and 12.46 km2 per kilometer of rail track, giving Italy the world's 13th largest rail network. Italy has 11 rail border crossings over the Alpine mountains with its neighbouring countries. Higher-speed trains are divided into three categories:
Frecciarossa ''Frecciarossa'' (; from , "red arrow") is a high-speed train of the Italian national train operator, Trenitalia, as well as a member of the train category Le Frecce. The name was introduced in 2008 after it had previously been known as Euro ...
() trains operate at a maximum speed of on dedicated high-speed tracks;
Frecciargento ''Frecciargento'' (; from , "silver arrow") is a high-speed train of the Italian national train operator, Trenitalia, as one of its '' Le Frecce'' brands (along with '' Frecciarossa'' and '' Frecciabianca''). The name was introduced in 2012; these ...
() trains operate at a maximum speed of on both high-speed and mainline tracks; and
Frecciabianca ''Frecciabianca'' (; from , "white arrow") is a high-speed train operated by Trenitalia, Italy's national train operator, and one of its '' Le Frecce'' brands, along with '' Frecciarossa'' and ''Frecciargento''. was introduced in 2011, replacing ...
() trains operate on high-speed regional lines at a maximum speed of . The Italian railway system has a length of , of which
standard gauge A standard-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge of . The standard gauge is also called Stephenson gauge (after George Stephenson), international gauge, UIC gauge, uniform gauge, normal gauge in Europe, and SGR in East Africa. It is the ...
and electrified. The active lines are . The network is recently growing with the construction of the new high-speed rail network. The narrow gauge tracks are: * of gauge (all electrified); * of gauge (of which electrified). A major part of the Italian rail network is managed and operated by
Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. (; ; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the initialism FS) is Italy's national state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estate services and other services in ...
, a state owned company. Other regional agencies, mostly owned by public entities such as regional governments, operate on the Italian network. The
rail tracks Railway track ( and UIC terminology) or railroad track (), also known as permanent way () or "P way" ( and Indian English), is the structure on a railway or railroad consisting of the rails, fasteners, sleepers ( railroad ties in American ...
and infrastructure are managed by
Rete Ferroviaria Italiana Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) is the Italian railway infrastructure manager, subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS), a state-owned holding company. RFI is the owner of Italy's railway network, it provides signalling, maintenance an ...
. The Italian railways are subsidised by the government, receiving €8.1 billion in 2009. Travellers who often make use of the railway during their stay in Italy might use Rail Passes, such as the European Inter-Rail or Italy's national and regional passes. These rail passes allow travellers the freedom to use regional trains during the validity period, but all high-speed and intercity trains require a 10-euro reservation fee. Regional passes, such as "Io viaggio ovunque Lombardia", offer one-day, multiple-day and monthly period of validity. There are also saver passes for adults, who travel as a group, with savings up to 20%. Foreign travellers should purchase these passes in advance, so that the passes could be delivered by post prior to the trip. When using the rail passes, the date of travel needs to be filled in before boarding the trains.


High speed trains

The Italian high-speed service began in 1938 with an electric-multiple-unit ETR 200, designed for , between Bologna and Naples. It too reached in commercial service, and achieved a world mean speed record of between Florence and Milan in 1938. Major works to increase the commercial speed of the trains already started in 1967: the Rome-Florence "super-direct" line was built for trains up to , and reduced the journey time to less than two hours. The Florence–Rome high-speed railway was the first high-speed line opened in Europe when more than half of it opened in 1977. In 2009 a new high-speed line linking Milan and Turin, operating at , opened to passenger traffic, reducing the journey time from two hours to one hour. In the same year, the Milan-Bologna line was open, reducing the journey time to 55 minutes. Also the Bologna-Florence high-speed line was upgraded to for a journey time of 35 minutes. Since then, it is possible to travel from Turin to Salerno (ca. ) in less than five hours. More than 100 trains per day are operated. The main public operator of high-speed trains (''alta velocità AV'', formerly
Eurostar Italia Eurostar Italia was the brand name given to high-speed trains operated by Trenitalia in Italy. The brand was discontinued and replaced with Le Frecce in December 2012. History Eurostar trains, which were launched in 1997 to replace the Pendolin ...
) is
Trenitalia Trenitalia Società per azioni, SpA is the primary train operator of Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government. It was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulati ...
, part of FSI. Trains are divided into three categories (called "
Le Frecce Le Frecce is the high-speed rail train category operated by Trenitalia in Italy under overall three brand names. History In 1997, a new category, "Eurostar", was introduced as the brand name of the high-speed trains run by Trenitalia in Italy. ...
"): ''
Frecciarossa ''Frecciarossa'' (; from , "red arrow") is a high-speed train of the Italian national train operator, Trenitalia, as well as a member of the train category Le Frecce. The name was introduced in 2008 after it had previously been known as Euro ...
'' ("Red arrow") trains operate at a maximum of on dedicated high-speed tracks; ''
Frecciargento ''Frecciargento'' (; from , "silver arrow") is a high-speed train of the Italian national train operator, Trenitalia, as one of its '' Le Frecce'' brands (along with '' Frecciarossa'' and '' Frecciabianca''). The name was introduced in 2012; these ...
'' (Silver arrow) trains operate at a maximum of on both high-speed and mainline tracks; ''
Frecciabianca ''Frecciabianca'' (; from , "white arrow") is a high-speed train operated by Trenitalia, Italy's national train operator, and one of its '' Le Frecce'' brands, along with '' Frecciarossa'' and ''Frecciargento''. was introduced in 2011, replacing ...
'' (White arrow) trains operate at a maximum of on mainline tracks only. Since 2012, a new and Italy's first private train operator, NTV (branded as Italo), run high-speed services in competition with
Trenitalia Trenitalia Società per azioni, SpA is the primary train operator of Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government. It was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulati ...
. Even nowadays, Italy is the only country in Europe with a private high-speed train operator. Construction of the Milan-Venice high-speed line has begun in 2013 and in 2016 the Milan-Treviglio section has been opened to passenger traffic; the Milan-Genoa high-speed line (Terzo Valico dei Giovi) is also under construction. Today it is possible to travel from Rome to Milan in less than three hours (2h 55') with the
Frecciarossa 1000 The Frecciarossa 1000 is a High-speed rail, high-speed train operated by Italian state railway operator Trenitalia and the private Spanish high-speed rail operator Iryo. It was co-developed as a joint venture between Italian rail manufacturer Hit ...
, the new high-speed train. To cover this route, there's a train every 30 minutes.


Night trains

The ''
Nightjet Nightjet (stylised as nightjet) is a brand name given by the ÖBB, Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) to its overnight passenger train services. ''Nightjet'' operates in Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Switze ...
'' of the Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) serves different big cities in Italy like Rome, Venice, Florence and Milano. The trains can be used for rides inside Italy as well as for journeys abroad. ''Nightjet'' trains offers beds in
sleeper carriage The sleeping car or sleeper (often ) is a railway passenger car (rail), passenger car that can accommodate all passengers in beds of one kind or another, for the purpose of sleeping. George Pullman was the main American innovator and owner of sl ...
s (Nightjet's most comfortable service category),
couchette A couchette car is a railway carriage conveying non or semi-private sleeping accommodation. Overview The car is divided into a number of compartments (typically 8 to 10) accessed from the side corridor of the car, which in daytime are configur ...
carriages, and seated carriages. On certain connections, cars can also be transported on the train. Bikes can be transported in a bike transport bag, or on some connections also in special bike racks.


Intercity trains

With the introduction of high-speed trains, intercity trains are limited to few services per day on mainline and regional tracks. The daytime services (''
InterCity InterCity (commonly abbreviated ''IC'' on timetables and tickets) is the train categories in Europe, classification applied to certain long-distance passenger train services in Europe. Such trains (in contrast to InterRegio, regional train, r ...
'' IC), while not frequent and limited to one or two trains per route, are essential in providing access to cities and towns off the railway's mainline network. The main routes are
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
to
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
(stopping at
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
,
Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
,
Prato Prato ( ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') in Tuscany, Italy, and is the capital of the province of Prato. The city lies in the northeast of Tuscany, at an elevation of , at the foot of Monte Retaia (the last peak in the Calvana ch ...
,
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
and
Arezzo Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level. As of 2 ...
),
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
to Rome (stopping at
Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
,
La Spezia La Spezia (, or ; ; , in the local ) is the capital city of the province of La Spezia and is located at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the southern part of the Liguria region of Italy. La Spezia is the second-largest city in the Liguria ...
,
Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...
and
Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...
/ stopping at
Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...
,
Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...
, Bologna, Prato, Florence and Arezzo), Bologna to
Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...
(stopping at
Rimini Rimini ( , ; or ; ) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. Sprawling along the Adriatic Sea, Rimini is situated at a strategically-important north-south passage along the coast at the southern tip of the Po Valley. It is ...
,
Ancona Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...
,
Pescara Pescara (; ; ) is the capital city of the province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo Regions of Italy, region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 118,657 (January 1, 2023) residents (and approximately 350,000 including the surround ...
,
Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...
and
Brindisi Brindisi ( ; ) is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Historically, the city has played an essential role in trade and culture due to its strategic position ...
) and Rome to
Reggio di Calabria Reggio di Calabria (; ), commonly and officially referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria as well as the seat of the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. As of 2025, it has 168,572 ...
(stopping at Latina and
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
). In addition, the Intercity trains provide a more economical means of long-distance rail travel within Italy. The night trains (''Intercity Notte'' ICN) have sleeper compartments and washrooms, but no showers on board. Main routes are Rome to
Bolzano Bolzano ( ; ; or ) is the capital city of South Tyrol (officially the province of Bolzano), Northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third largest in historical Tyrol. The ...
/Bozen (calling at Florence, Bologna,
Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...
,
Rovereto Rovereto (; "wood of sessile oaks"; locally: ''Roveredo'') is a city and ''comune'' in Trentino in northern Italy, located in the Vallagarina valley of the Adige River. History Rovereto was an ancient fortress town standing at the fronti ...
and
Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin language, Ladin and ; ; ; ; ; ), also known in English as Trent, is a city on the Adige, Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the Trentino, autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ...
), Milan to
Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...
(calling at Piacenza, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Bologna, Faenza, Forlì, Cesena, Rimini, Ancona, Pescara, Bari and Brindisi),
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
to Lecce (calling at
Alessandria Alessandria (; ) is a city and commune in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. It is also the largest municipality of the region. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, ...
,
Voghera image:Voghera Castle.jpg, The Castle of Voghera in a 19th-century etching. Voghera (Emilian dialect, Vogherese dialect of Emilian: ''Vughera''; Latin language, Latin: ''Forum Iulii Iriensium'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Pavia i ...
,
Piacenza Piacenza (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Piacenza, eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with more ...
, Parma, Bologna, Rimini, Pescara, Termoli, San Severo,Foggia, Barletta, Bisceglie, Molfetta, Bari, Monopoli, Fasano, Ostuni and Brindisi) and Reggio di Calabria to Turin (calling at Naples, Rome,
Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...
, La Spezia and Genova). Most portions of these ICN services run during the night; since most services take 10 to 15 hours to complete a one-way journey, their day-time portion provide extra train connections to complement with the Intercity services. There are a total of 86 intercity trains running within Italy per day.


Regional trains

Trenitalia operates regional services (both fast ''veloce RGV'' and stopping ''REG'') throughout Italy. Regional train agencies exist: their train schedules are largely connected to and shown on Trenitalia, and tickets for such train services can be purchased through Trenitalia's national network. Other regional agencies have separate ticket systems which are not mutually exchangeable with that of Trenitalia. These "regional" tickets could be purchased at local newsagents or tobacco stores instead. * Trentino-Alto Adige / Trentino-Südtirol: Südtirol Bahn (South Tyrol Railway) runs regional services on Ala/Ahl-am-Etsch to Bolzano/Bozen (calling at Rovereto/Rofreit, Trento/Trient and Mezzocorona/Kronmetz), Bolzano/Bozen to Merano/Meran, Bressanone/Brixen to San Candido/Innichen, and a direct "Tirol regional express REX" service between Bolzano/Bozen in Italy and Innsbruck in Austria. *
Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
:
Sistemi Territoriali Sistemi Territoriali (ST) is a private transport company of Italy. The company is owned by the Regions of Italy, region of Veneto. From 1 April 2002 the company took over the management of some regional railway lines and the train services on the ...
runs regional trains in Veneto region. *
Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...
:
Trenord Trenord is a railway company which is responsible for the operation of regional and suburban passenger trains mainly in Lombardy. The company was established by the two main railway companies in Lombardy, Trenitalia and Ferrovie Nord Milano (FNM ...
runs the Malpensa Express airport train, many Milan's suburban lines and most regional train services in Lombardy. Trenord also co-operates with DB and
ÖBB The Austrian Federal Railways ( , formally or () and formerly the or ''BBÖ'' ), now commonly known as ÖBB (), is the national railway company of Austria, and the administrator of Liechtenstein's railways. The ÖBB group i ...
on the EuroCity Verona-Munich service, and with
SBB CFF FFS Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a government institution, but since 1999 it has been a special stock corpo ...
(joint-venture TiLo) on the regional Milan-Bellinzona service. *
Emilia-Romagna Emilia-Romagna (, , both , ; or ; ) is an Regions of Italy, administrative region of northern Italy, comprising the historical regions of Emilia (region), Emilia and Romagna. Its capital is Bologna. It has an area of , and a population of 4.4 m ...
:
Trasporto Passeggeri Emilia-Romagna Trasporto Passeggeri Emilia-Romagna (TPER, Italian for ''Emilia-Romagna passenger transportation'') is a public company overseeing public transportation in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, in the province of Ferrara and in parts of the province ...
provides vital connections across cities on different mainline networks, including Modena, Parma, Suzzara, Ferrara, Reggio Emilia and Bologna. *
Tuscany Tuscany ( ; ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of 3,660,834 inhabitants as of 2025. The capital city is Florence. Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, artistic legacy, and its in ...
: La Ferroviaria Italiana operates in Arezzo province. *
Abruzzo Abruzzo (, ; ; , ''Abbrìzze'' or ''Abbrèzze'' ; ), historically also known as Abruzzi, is a Regions of Italy, region of Southern Italy with an area of 10,763 square km (4,156 sq mi) and a population of 1.3 million. It is divided into four ...
: Sangritana runs daily services between Pescara and Lanciano. In addition to these agencies, there's a great deal of other little operators, such as AMT Genova for the Genova-Casella railway.


Rail links with adjacent countries

Italy has 11 rail border crossings over the Alpine mountains with her neighbouring countries: six are designated as mainline tracks and two are metre-gauge tracks. The six mainline border crossings are: two with
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
(one for Nice and Marseille; the other for Lyon and Dijon), two with
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
(one for Brig, Bern and Geneva; the other for Chiasso, Lugano, Lucerne and Zürich), and two with Austria (one for Innsbruck; the other for Villach, Graz and Vienna). The two-metre-gauge track crossings are located at the border town of
Tirano Tirano (; ) is a town and (municipality) in Valtellina, located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy (northern Italy). It has 9,053 inhabitants (2016) and is adjacent to the Italy–Switzerland border. The river Adda (river), Adda flows through ...
(enters Switzerland's Canton Graubünden/Grisons) and Domodossola (enters Switzerland's Locarno). There is a railway line connecting Italy's northeastern port of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
to
Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...
, but no passenger or freight services operate on this track. Consequently, there is no direct connections between Trieste and
Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...
, the capital of Slovenia, despite the proximity of both cities. * Italy-France: Marseille-Ventimiglia railway, currently EuroCity trains of
Thello Trenitalia France is an open-access train operator running international services between France and Italy. It was originally established under the Thello brand in October 2011. On 11 December 2011, Thello ran its first night service, having ra ...
Milan-Marseille and one
EuroNight EuroNight, abbreviated EN, is a European train category that denotes many mainline national and international night train services within the Western and Central European inter-city rail network. Overview The classification and name were brough ...
train of RZD Moscow-Nice. * Italy-France:
Fréjus Rail Tunnel The Fréjus Rail Tunnel (also called Mont Cenis Tunnel) is a rail tunnel of length in the European Alps, carrying the Turin–Modane railway through Mont Cenis to an end-on connection with the Culoz–Modane railway and linking Bardonecc ...
at above sea, currently
SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (, , SNCF ) is France's national State-owned enterprise, state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the Rail transport in France, country's national rail traffic along with th ...
TGV trains Milan-Paris and Turin-Paris and EuroNight trains of
Thello Trenitalia France is an open-access train operator running international services between France and Italy. It was originally established under the Thello brand in October 2011. On 11 December 2011, Thello ran its first night service, having ra ...
Venice-Paris * Italy-Switzerland: Domodossola–Locarno railway metre-gauge trains * Italy-Switzerland:
Simplon Tunnel The Simplon Tunnel (''Simplontunnel'', ''Traforo del Sempione'' or ''Galleria del Sempione'') is a railway tunnel on the Simplon railway that connects Brig, Switzerland, Brig, Switzerland and Domodossola, Italy, through the Alps, providing a shor ...
, currently EuroCity trains of
SBB CFF FFS Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a government institution, but since 1999 it has been a special stock corpo ...
Milan-Geneva and Milan-Bern * Italy-Switzerland: connecting Varese (Italy) to Bellinzona (Switzerland) and runs on the eastern coast of Lake Maggiore * Italy-Switzerland: Milan–Chiasso railway, currently EuroCity trains of
SBB CFF FFS Swiss Federal Railways (, SBB; , CFF; , FFS) is the national railway company of Switzerland. The company was founded in 1902 and is headquartered in Bern. It used to be a government institution, but since 1999 it has been a special stock corpo ...
Milan-Zürich * Italy-Switzerland:
Bernina railway The Bernina railway line (; ; ) is a Single track (rail), single-track railway line forming part of the Rhaetian Railway (RhB). It links the spa resort of St. Moritz, in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Graubünden, Switzerland, with the tow ...
at above sea, metre-gauge trains of
RhB The Rhaetian Railway (; ; ), abbreviated RhB, is a Swiss transport company that owns the largest network of all private railway operators in Switzerland. Headquartered in Chur, the RhB operates all the railway lines of the Cantons of Switzerland, ...
Tirano-St. Moritz and the Bernina Express tourist train * Italy-Austria:
Brenner railway The Brenner Railway (; ) is a major line connecting the Austrian and Italian railways from Innsbruck to Verona, climbing up the Wipptal ( German for "Wipp Valley"), passing over the Brenner Pass, descending down the Eisacktal ( German for " ...
at above sea, currently EuroCity trains of ÖBB-DB Munich-Verona and Munich-Venice/Bologna, and DB
CityNightLine CityNightLine AG (timetable and platform sign abbreviation: CNL) was a Swiss night train service. CNL had right of passage grants in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Denmark. It served stations in Belgium, France, Italy and t ...
Munich-Rome/Milan * Italy-Austria: at above sea connecting San Candido/Innichen (Italy) and Lienz (Austria) * Italy-Austria: connecting Venice and Udine (Italy) to Villach (Austria), currently EuroCity trains of
ÖBB The Austrian Federal Railways ( , formally or () and formerly the or ''BBÖ'' ), now commonly known as ÖBB (), is the national railway company of Austria, and the administrator of Liechtenstein's railways. The ÖBB group i ...
Venice-Vienna, EuroNight trains of
ÖBB The Austrian Federal Railways ( , formally or () and formerly the or ''BBÖ'' ), now commonly known as ÖBB (), is the national railway company of Austria, and the administrator of Liechtenstein's railways. The ÖBB group i ...
Vienna-Rome/Milan, and DB
CityNightLine CityNightLine AG (timetable and platform sign abbreviation: CNL) was a Swiss night train service. CNL had right of passage grants in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria, Switzerland and Denmark. It served stations in Belgium, France, Italy and t ...
Munich-Venice * Italy-Slovenia: Tarvisio–Ljubljana Railway The
Vatican City Vatican City, officially the Vatican City State (; ), is a Landlocked country, landlocked sovereign state and city-state; it is enclaved within Rome, the capital city of Italy and Bishop of Rome, seat of the Catholic Church. It became inde ...
is also linked to Italy with a railway line serving a single railway station, the Vatican City railway station. This line is used only for special occasions.
San Marino San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...
used to have a narrow gauge rail connection with Italy; this was dismantled in 1944.


Stations

Italy's top ten railway stations by annual passengers are:


Rapid transit


Metro

The
Rome Metro The Rome Metro () is a rapid transit system that operates in Rome, Italy. It started operation in 1955, making it the oldest in the country. The Metro comprises three lines – A (orange), B (blue) and C (green) – which operate on of rout ...
is a
rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...
system that operates in
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. It started operation in 1955, making it the oldest in the country. The Metro comprises three lines – A (orange), B (blue) and C (green) – which operate on of route, serving 73 stations. It has a daily ridership of approximately 820,000 passengers, and an annual traffic of approximately 320 million passengers.
Milan Metro The Milan Metro () is the rapid transit system serving Milan, Italy, operated by Azienda Trasporti Milanesi. The network consists of five lines with a total network length of , and a total of List of Milan Metro stations, 125 stations (+2 in con ...
is the largest rapid transit system in Italy in terms of length, number of stations and ridership; and the fifth longest in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
and the eighth in the
Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
. The network consists of five lines (two of which driverless) with a total network length of , and a total of 125 stations, mostly underground. The first line, Line 1, opened in 1964; Line 2 opened 5 years later in 1969, Line 3 in 1990, Line 5 (driverless) in 2013, and Line 4 (driverless) in 2022. The
Naples Metro The Naples Metro () is a rapid transit system serving the city of Naples, Campania, Italy and some parts of the adjacent ''Comune, comuni'' of its Naples metropolitan area, metropolitan area through Naples–Aversa railway, Line 11. The system ...
is a rapid transit system serving the city of
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
,
Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...
,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
and some parts of the adjacent ''
comuni A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...
'' of its
metropolitan area A metropolitan area or metro is a region consisting of a densely populated urban area, urban agglomeration and its surrounding territories which share Industry (economics), industries, commercial areas, Transport infrastructure, transport network ...
through Line 11. The system comprises three underground rapid transit lines ( Line 1, Line 6 and Line 11). It is the third largest underground network in Italy, behind Milan and Rome. The Art Stations of the Naples Metro consist of 12 stations along Line 1 and Line 6 of the Naples Metro with art installations. In total, there are more than 250 works of art. On 30 November 2012, the Toledo station was elected by ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
'' as the most beautiful subway station in Europe and the world, a recognition echoed by
CNN Cable News Network (CNN) is a multinational news organization operating, most notably, a website and a TV channel headquartered in Atlanta. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable ne ...
’s rankings; while the Materdei station resulted at 13th place. Seven Italian cities have
metro Metro may refer to: Geography * Metro City (Indonesia), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urban area with high ...
systems:


Commuter rail

15 cities have
commuter rail Commuter rail or suburban rail is a Passenger train, passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting Commuting, commuters to a Central business district, central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter town ...
systems; cities without wikilink are those listed just above for their metro rail system. *
Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...
( Bari metropolitan railway service, 3 lines) *
Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
(
Bologna metropolitan railway service The Bologna metropolitan railway service (Italian: ''servizio ferroviario metropolitano di Bologna'', acronym: ''SFMBO'') is a commuter railway service around the Italian city of Bologna. Several system expansions are currently under construction. ...
, 8 lines) *
Cagliari Cagliari (, , ; ; ; Latin: ''Caralis'') is an Comune, Italian municipality and the capital and largest city of the island of Sardinia, an Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Italy. It has about 146,62 ...
, 1 line *
Catanzaro Catanzaro (; or ; ), also known as the "City of the two Seas" (), is an Italian city of 86,183 inhabitants (2020), the capital of the Calabria region and of its province and the second most populated comune of the region, behind Reggio Calabr ...
, 2 lines * Genoa ( Genoa urban railway service, 3 lines) *
Messina Messina ( , ; ; ; ) is a harbour city and the capital city, capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of 216,918 inhabitants ...
, 1 line * Milan (
Milan suburban railway service The Milan S Lines constitute the commuter rail system serving the metropolitan area of Milan, Italy. The system comprises 12 lines serving 124 stations, for a total length of 403 km. There are 415 trains per day with a daily ridership of a ...
, 12 lines) * Naples (
Naples metropolitan railway service The Naples Metropolitan Railway Service (), is a commuter rail system serving the Naples metropolitan area, metropolitan area of Naples, Italy. The system comprises 7 lines operated by Ente Autonomo Volturno and 1 line (Line 2 (Naples), Line 2) o ...
, 8 lines) *
Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...
(
Palermo metropolitan railway service The Palermo metropolitan railway service is a commuter rail system operated by Trenitalia. It serves the city of Palermo in Sicily, Italy. Lines There are two lines: * Palermo Centrale Punta Raisi (airport) * Palermo Notarbartolo Giachery Bo ...
, 2 lines) *
Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...
, 1 line *
Potenza Potenza (, ; ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one of ...
, 1 line *
Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria (; ), commonly and officially referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the List of cities in Italy, largest city in Calabria as well as the seat of the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. As ...
, 1 line * Rome (
FL lines The FL lines, formerly Lazio regional railways (, also ''Ferrovie Laziali'') consist of 8 commuter rail lines operated by Trenitalia, converging on the city of Rome. It operates as a combined suburban railway system that connects the city-centre ...
, 8 lines) *
Salerno Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
( Salerno metropolitan railway service, 1 line) * Turin ( Turin metropolitan railway service, 8 lines) *
Treni Regionali Ticino Lombardia TiLo () is a limited company established in 2004 as a joint venture between Italian railway company Trenord and Swiss Federal Railways (SBB CFF FFS); both companies participate in the equity of TILO SA with participation of 50%. It o ...
connects
Canton Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts and its capital city is Bellinzona ...
,
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
, and
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, reaching Lombard cities like
Como Como (, ; , or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in Lombardy, Italy. It is the administrative capital of the Province of Como. Nestled at the southwestern branch of the picturesque Lake Como, the city is a renowned tourist destination, ce ...
and
Varese Varese ( , ; or ; ; ; archaic ) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 was 80,559. It is the capital of the Province of Varese. The hinterland or exurban part ...
and the
Milan Malpensa Airport Milan Malpensa Airport "Silvio Berlusconi" is an international airport in Ferno, in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is the largest airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria, as well as the Swiss canton of T ...
.


Airport shuttles

Airport shuttle buses are highly developed and convenient for rail travellers. Most airports in Italy are not connected to the railway network, except for
Rome Fiumicino Airport Leonardo da Vinci Rome Fiumicino Airport () is an international airport in Fiumicino, Italy, serving Rome. It is the busiest airport in the country, the eighth-busiest airport in Europe and the world's 39th-busiest airport with over 49.2&nb ...
,
Milan Malpensa Airport Milan Malpensa Airport "Silvio Berlusconi" is an international airport in Ferno, in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is the largest airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria, as well as the Swiss canton of T ...
and
Turin Caselle Airport Turin Airport () , also known as Turin-Caselle Airport (''Aeroporto di Torino-Caselle''), is an international airport (civil and military) located at Caselle Torinese, north-northwest of the city of Turin, in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Pie ...
. In
Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...
, there is the monorail Marconi Express, connecting Bologna Airport to the main
railway station Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
.
Linate Airport Milan Linate Airport is a city airport located in Milan, the second-largest city and largest urban area of Italy. It served 10.6 million passengers and recorded 118,060 aircraft movements in 2024, making it one of the busiest airports in Ital ...
in Milan has been connected to line 4 of the
Milan Metro The Milan Metro () is the rapid transit system serving Milan, Italy, operated by Azienda Trasporti Milanesi. The network consists of five lines with a total network length of , and a total of List of Milan Metro stations, 125 stations (+2 in con ...
since 2022. * Venice: Venezia-Mestre station - Marco Polo Airport (50 minutes) and Treviso Airport * Milan: Milano Centrale station - Malpensa Airport (1 hour 5 minutes), Linate Airport (35 minutes) and Milan Bergamo Airport (1 hour) * Brescia: Brescia station - Milan Bergamo Airport (1 hour) * Rome: Rome Termini station - Fiumicino Airport (31 minutes) * Verona: Verona Porta Nuova station - Villafranca "Catullo" Airport (20 minutes) * Bologna: Centrale station - Bologna Airport (20 minutes) - Route modified in November 2020. It shifted from route BLQ (Bologna Centrale Station-Bologna Airport) to route 944 Ospedale Maggiore-Bologna Airport * Pescara Centrale station - Abruzzo Airport (10 minutes) * Pisa: Pisa Centrale station - San Giusto Airport (5 minutes) * Florence: Firenze S M Novella station - Florence Airport


Tram-train

2 cities have
tram-train A tram-train or dual-system tram is a type of light rail vehicle that both meets the standards of a light rail system, and also national mainline standards. Tramcars are adapted to be capable of running on streets like an urban tramway but a ...
system,
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
and
Sassari Sassari ( ; ; ; ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 120,497 inhabitants as of 2025, and a functional urban area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island, it contains ...
. The
Rome–Giardinetti railway The Roma–Giardinetti railway is a narrow-gauge street running tram-train railway in Rome, Italy. It connects Laziali (a regional train station some from Termini's main concourse) with Giardinetti to the east just past the Grande Raccordo An ...
connects Laziali (a regional train station some from Termini's main concourse) with Giardinetti to the east just past the
Grande Raccordo Anulare Autostrada A90 or Grande Raccordo Anulare () or GRA is a ring-shaped ''autostrada'' (Italian for "motorway") long in Italy located in the region of Lazio that encircles Rome. It is a part of the E80 European route. GRA is one of the most impo ...
, Rome's orbital motorway. It is run by
ATAC Atac (styled ''ATAC'') is a brand of predominantly food stores operating supermarkets, created by the Docks de France in 1982, and a subsidiary of the Auchan Group since 1998. The idea of the Atac concept was a supermarket which was near bare ...
, the company responsible for public transportation in the city, which also operates the
Rome Metro The Rome Metro () is a rapid transit system that operates in Rome, Italy. It started operation in 1955, making it the oldest in the country. The Metro comprises three lines – A (orange), B (blue) and C (green) – which operate on of rout ...
. The present railway is the only part of the old and longer Rome–Fiuggi–Alatri–Frosinone railway to be in service. The latest shortening of the line occurred in 2008 with the closing of the Giardinetti–Pantano section, which has now become part of the Metro Line C. The line had been due to be dismantled in 2016 to be replaced with a bus lane along Via Casilina, but in March 2015 it was announced that the line would instead be retained and modernised.
Metrosassari Metrosassari, also called ''Sassari tramway'', ''Sassari tram-train'' or ''Sassari metro-tramway'' ( or ) is the commercial name of a tram-train line in Sassari, Sardinia, Italy, operated by the regional public transport company ARST (''Azienda R ...
, also called ''Sassari tramway'', ''Sassari tram-train'' or ''Sassari metro-tramway'' ( or ) is the commercial name of a
tram-train A tram-train or dual-system tram is a type of light rail vehicle that both meets the standards of a light rail system, and also national mainline standards. Tramcars are adapted to be capable of running on streets like an urban tramway but a ...
line in
Sassari Sassari ( ; ; ; ) is an Italian city and the second-largest of Sardinia in terms of population with 120,497 inhabitants as of 2025, and a functional urban area of about 260,000 inhabitants. One of the oldest cities on the island, it contains ...
,
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...
, Italy, operated by the regional public transport company ''ARST'' (''Azienda Regionale Sarda Trasporti''). Despite having been built in the early 2000s, in the urban section the line was built with single track and
narrow gauge A narrow-gauge railway (narrow-gauge railroad in the US) is a railway with a track gauge (distance between the rails) narrower than . Most narrow-gauge railways are between and . Since narrow-gauge railways are usually built with Minimum railw ...
, to connect with the same gauge used in the secondary railway lines in Sardinia. The tramway part of the line ('' Stazione'' - ''Emiciclo Garibaldi'') opened in October 2006, linking the railway station with the city centre via the hospital district. On 27 September 2009 the line was extended into the peripheral district of Santa Maria di Pisa, running on the electrified portion of the Sassari–Sorso railway. The main part of the network is in 2013 in advanced development phase. It is under construction is the extension of the line from Santa Maria di Pisa to Li Punti and Baldinca, and the electrification of the railway to
Sorso Sorso () is a ''comune'' (municipality) of c. 14,700 inhabitants in the province of Sassari in the Italy, Italian region Sardinia, located about north of Sassari. Overview Sorso is a tourist resort facing the Gulf of Asinara. Apart tourism, the e ...
, 10 km from Sassari. It is also planned to convert and electrify the 28 km Sassari-Alghero railway to allow the trams to reach the village of Olmedo,
Fertilia Airport Fertilia er-tì-liais a frazione (hamlet) in the municipality of Alghero in the province of Sassari, Sardinia, Italy. History Fertilia was built by the Fascist government of Italy in the 1930s, after the draining of the marshes which covered t ...
and the town of
Alghero Alghero (; ; ; ) is a city of about 45,000 inhabitants in the Italian province of Sassari in the north west of the island of Sardinia, next to the Mediterranean Sea. The city's name comes from ''Aleguerium'', which is a mediaeval Latin word m ...
.


Roads

Roads in Italy Roads in Italy are an important mode of transport in Italy. The classification of the roads of Italy is regulated by the Italian traffic code, both from a technical and administrative point of view. The street nomenclature largely reflects the ...
are an important mode of transport in Italy. The classification of the roads of
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
is regulated by the Italian
traffic code Traffic codes are laws that generally include provisions relating to the establishment of authority and enforcement procedures, statement of the rules of the road, and other safety provisions. Administrative regulations for driver licensing, v ...
, both from a technical and administrative point of view. The street nomenclature largely reflects the administrative classification. Italy's paved road network is well developed. Italy is one of the countries with the most vehicles per capita, with 690 per 1000 people in 2010. Italy has a total of of paved roads, of which are
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s with a general speed limit of , which since 2009 was provisioned for extension up to . The speed limit in towns is usually and less commonly .


Technical classification


Motorways

Italy was the first country in the world to build
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s, the so-called ''
autostrade The ''autostrade'' (; : ''autostrada'', ) are roads forming the Italy, Italian national system of motorways. The total length of the system is about , as of 30 July 2022. There are also 13 motorway spur routes, which extend for . Most of the ...
'', reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only. The ''
Autostrada dei Laghi The Autostrada A8 or Autostrada dei Laghi ('Lakes motorway') is an ''autostrada'' (Italian for 'motorway') long in Italy located in the region of Lombardy connecting Milan to Varese (on the Lake of Varese) and connecting Milan to Gallarate an ...
'' ("Lakes Motorway"), the first built in the world, connecting
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
to
Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...
and
Lake Maggiore Lake Maggiore (, ; ; ; ; literally 'greater lake') or Verbano (; ) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. The lake and its shoreline are divided be ...
, and now parts of the Autostrada A8 and the Autostrada A9, was devised by
Piero Puricelli Piero Puricelli (born 4 April 1883 in Milan - died 8 May 1951 in Milan), Count of Lomnago, was an Italian engineer and politician in the first half of the 20th century who was responsible for the ideation, in Italy, of the first motorways in the ...
and was inaugurated in 1924. Other motorways (or ''autostrade'') built before
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
were
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
-
Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...
,
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
-
Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...
,
Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...
-
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
,
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
-
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
, Milan-
Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...
-
Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...
and
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
- Ostia. The total length of the Italian motorway system is about , as of 30 July 2022. To these data are added 13 motorway
spur route A spur route is a short road forming a branch from a longer, more important road such as a freeway, Interstate Highway, or motorway. A Bypass route, bypass or beltway is not considered a spur route as it typically reconnects with another or the ...
s, which extend for . The density is of motorway for every of Italian territory. Italy was the first country in the world to build
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s, the so-called ''
autostrade The ''autostrade'' (; : ''autostrada'', ) are roads forming the Italy, Italian national system of motorways. The total length of the system is about , as of 30 July 2022. There are also 13 motorway spur routes, which extend for . Most of the ...
'', reserved for fast traffic and for motor vehicles only. The ''
Autostrada dei Laghi The Autostrada A8 or Autostrada dei Laghi ('Lakes motorway') is an ''autostrada'' (Italian for 'motorway') long in Italy located in the region of Lombardy connecting Milan to Varese (on the Lake of Varese) and connecting Milan to Gallarate an ...
'' ("Lakes Motorway"), the first built in the world, connecting
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
to
Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...
and
Lake Maggiore Lake Maggiore (, ; ; ; ; literally 'greater lake') or Verbano (; ) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. The lake and its shoreline are divided be ...
, and now parts of the Autostrada A8 and the Autostrada A9, was devised by
Piero Puricelli Piero Puricelli (born 4 April 1883 in Milan - died 8 May 1951 in Milan), Count of Lomnago, was an Italian engineer and politician in the first half of the 20th century who was responsible for the ideation, in Italy, of the first motorways in the ...
and was inaugurated in 1924. Other motorways (or ''autostrade'') built before
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
were
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
-
Pompeii Pompeii ( ; ) was a city in what is now the municipality of Pompei, near Naples, in the Campania region of Italy. Along with Herculaneum, Stabiae, and Villa Boscoreale, many surrounding villas, the city was buried under of volcanic ash and p ...
,
Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...
-
Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...
,
Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...
-
Venice Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
,
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
-
Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
, Milan-
Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...
-
Brescia Brescia (, ; ; or ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the region of Lombardy, in Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Lake Garda, Garda and Lake Iseo, Iseo. With a population of 199,949, it is the se ...
and
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
- Ostia. The total length of the Italian motorway system is about , as of 30 July 2022. To these data are added 13 motorway
spur route A spur route is a short road forming a branch from a longer, more important road such as a freeway, Interstate Highway, or motorway. A Bypass route, bypass or beltway is not considered a spur route as it typically reconnects with another or the ...
s, which extend for . The density is of motorway for every of Italian territory. In particular, of the Italian motorway network have three lanes per carriageway, km have four lanes per carriageway, have five lanes per carriageway, while the remaining part is two lanes per carriageway. The density is of motorway for every of Italian territory. Italian motorways (or ''autostrade'') are mostly managed by concessionaire companies. From 1 October 2012 the granting body is the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and no longer
Anas ''Anas'' is a genus of dabbling ducks. It includes the pintails, most teals, and the mallard and its close relatives. It formerly included additional species but following the publication of a molecular phylogenetic study in 2009 the genus was s ...
and the majority ( in 2009) are subject to
toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Toll road, a type of road which for which payment is required for passage ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road to ...
payments. On Italian motorways, the
toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Toll road, a type of road which for which payment is required for passage ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road to ...
applies to almost all motorways not managed by
Anas ''Anas'' is a genus of dabbling ducks. It includes the pintails, most teals, and the mallard and its close relatives. It formerly included additional species but following the publication of a molecular phylogenetic study in 2009 the genus was s ...
. The collection of motorway tolls, from a tariff point of view, is managed mainly in two ways: either through the "closed motorway system" (km travelled) or through the "open motorway system" (flat-rate toll).Come si calcola il pedaggio - Autostrade per l'Italia S.p.A
Italy's motorways (or ''autostrade'') have a standard speed limit of for cars. Limits for other vehicles (or when visibility is poor due to weather) are lower. Legal provisions allow operators to set the limit to on their concessions on a voluntary basis if there are three lanes in each direction and a working SICVE, or Safety Tutor, which is a speed-camera system that measures the average speed over a given distance.


Extra-urban roads

In Italy, a dual carriageway is often called ''superstrada'' (meaning ''expressway''), but this name is unofficial. Italian
traffic code Traffic codes are laws that generally include provisions relating to the establishment of authority and enforcement procedures, statement of the rules of the road, and other safety provisions. Administrative regulations for driver licensing, v ...
(''Codice della strada'') divides extra-urban dual carriageways into two different classifications: * ''
strada extraurbana principale The ''strade extraurbane principali'' ("main extra-urban road"; : ''strada extraurbana principale'') or type B road, better known as a "superstrada", are a type of roads of Italy defined within the Italian Highway Code. Characteristics Therefore ...
'' (meaning ''main highway'') or ''type-B road'': a road with separate carriageways, at least two lanes for each direction, paved shoulder on the right and no cross-traffic. This type of road is quite similar to an ''
autostrada The ''autostrade'' (; : ''autostrada'', ) are roads forming the Italian national system of motorways. The total length of the system is about , as of 30 July 2022. There are also 13 motorway spur routes, which extend for . Most of the Itali ...
'' or ''type-A road'' (Italian official name for
motorway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s or
freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
s), but its building standards are lower. Access limitations and drive behaviour on type-B roads are the same as the motorways (no pedestrians, bicycles and other slow vehicles), as well as the signage (except for the background color, that is blue instead of green). Speed limits on type-B roads are up to . Type-B roads are always toll-free. * ''strada extraurbana secondaria'' (meaning ''secondary road'') or ''type-C road''. This category contains all the roads in non-urban context that are neither ''autostrada'' (type A) nor ''strada extraurbana principale'' (type B). This means that a dual carriageway that may not be classified as type-B road, since it does not meet such quality standards, belongs to this category. For type-C roads, there are neither special signage nor access restrictions, unless a specific sign is placed. The speed limit is , on both single and dual carriageways.


Urban roads

These are the roads present within inhabited centers. Urban roads are of three types: * ''strada urbana di scorrimento'' (meaning ''urban expressway'') or ''type-D road'': a road in urban context, with separate carriageways, and at least two lanes for each direction. At-level junctions with smaller roads, regulated by traffic lights, are allowed as well as roundabouts. Unless a prohibition sign is placed, there are not access restrictions. Speed limits on this type of road are up to . * ''strada urbana di quartiere'' (meaning ''urban neighborhood road'') or ''type E road'': single carriageway road with at least two lanes, paved shoulders and sidewalks; for parking there are areas equipped with a special maneuvering lane, outside the roadway; ** ''strada urbana ciclabile'' (meaning ''urban cycle road'') or ''type E-bis road'': urban road with a single carriageway, with paved shoulders and sidewalks, with a speed limit of no more than 30 km/h, defined by specific vertical and horizontal signs, with priority for bicycles. * ''strada locale'' (meaning ''local road'') or ''type F road'': urban or extra-urban road not belonging to the other types of roads; ** ''strada vicinale'': is a privately owned road of local interest located outside the town centre. In Italy the local road is a de facto communication route built to access a series of plots of land, or generally to connect to a road. ** ''itinerario ciclopedonale'' (meaning ''cycle/pedestrian itinerary'') or ''type F-bis road'': local, urban, extra-urban or local road, mainly intended for pedestrian and cycle travel, and characterized by intrinsic safety to protect vulnerable road users.


Administrative classification


State roads

The Strade Statali (; ), abbreviated "SS", is the Italy, Italian national network of
state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either Route number, numbered or maintained by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered ...
s. The total length for this network is about . The Italian state highway network are maintained by ANAS. From 1928 until 1946 state highways were maintained by Azienda Autonoma Statale della Strada (AASS). The routes of some state highways derive from ancient
Roman roads Roman roads ( ; singular: ; meaning "Roman way") were physical infrastructure vital to the maintenance and development of the Roman state, built from about 300 BC through the expansion and consolidation of the Roman Republic and the Roman Em ...
, such as the Strada statale 7 Via Appia, which broadly follows the route of the Roman road of the same name. State highways can be technically defined as main extra-urban roads (type B road) or as secondary extra-urban roads (type C road). State highways that cross towns with a population of at least 10,000 inhabitants are urban roads (type D and E) under the jurisdiction of the relevant ''comuni''. The state highway that cross towns or villages with a population of less than 10,000 inhabitants are urban roads (type D and E) under the jurisdiction of the ''comune'', subject to authorization from ANAS. The Italian state highway network has approximately of roads identified with the acronym SS. The body that manages these roads, with full state participation, is ANAS (National Autonomous Roads Company), founded in 1946, on the ashes of the old AASS (Autonomous State Roads Company) which in turn was established in 1928. Due to urbanization processes, it has abandoned some sections of state highways, following their acquisition by the interested ''comuni'', who now take care of their maintenance.


Regional roads

A Regional road (Italy), Strada Regionale (Italian language, Italian for "regional road"; "strade regionali"), abbreviated SR, is a type of Italy, Italian road maintained by the regions of Italy, regions they traverse. A regional road is less important than a state highway (Italy), state highway, but more important than a Provincial road (Italy), provincial road. The concept of regional road was introduced for the first time in Italy, limited to the autonomous region of Aosta Valley (where no provincial body exists), with regional law no. 1 of 10 October 1950. The first roads (excluding Aosta Valley) classified as SR (acronym for ''strada regionale''; "regional road") were created following legislative decree no. 112 of 1998, in 2001. In particular, articles 99 and 101 provided for the transfer of ownership and responsibilities relating to State highways (Italy), state highways not included in the national road network from the State to the regions, which then regulated the matter autonomously. For organizational reasons, many regions have entrusted the former state highways to the Provinces of Italy, provinces, while maintaining the acronym SR. In addition to these regional roads created following the downgrading of the state network, there are regional roads immediately classified as such (for example SR 6 in Apulia although subsequently downgraded to provincial) or former provincial regional roads such as SR 89, ex SP 62, in
Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
. The regional roads can be technically classified as ''strade extraurbane principali'' (type B road; "main extra-urban roads") or as ''strade extraurbane secondarie'' (type C road; "secondary extra-urban roads"). If they cross inhabited centers with a population greater than 9,999 inhabitants, they are roads under municipal jurisdiction and therefore urban (type D and E). If they pass through centers or inhabited areas with a population of less than 9,999 inhabitants, they are urban (type D and E), but the responsibility remains with the manager. In addition to the roads identified by the acronym SR, there are roads managed by the region but identified by the acronym SP (for example, many SPs in the province of Belluno are managed by the Veneto Strade company with a 30% stake in the region of the same name).


Provincial roads

A Provincial road (Italy), Strada Provinciale (Italian language, Italian for "provincial road"; "strade provinciali"), abbreviated SP, is an Italian road that is maintained by provinces of Italy, provinces or Metropolitan cities of Italy, metropolitan cities. In
Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
from 2002, state highway (Italy), state highways downgraded as provincial roads are maintained by the regional company Veneto Strade. A provincial road is less important than a regional road (Italy), regional road, but more important than Strada Comunale, municipal roads. Before the entry into force of the new Italian
traffic code Traffic codes are laws that generally include provisions relating to the establishment of authority and enforcement procedures, statement of the rules of the road, and other safety provisions. Administrative regulations for driver licensing, v ...
(legislative decree n° 285 of 30 April 1992) the provincial classification of a road had to take place by decree of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport (Italy), Minister of Public Works; over the years, this has made the same procedures too centralized and therefore slower and more difficult, until the new Italian traffic code assigned the competence on classification to the Regions of Italy, regions (
Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
, however, has further devolved the competences of classification and declassification to the provinces themselves).


Municipal roads

A Municipal road (Italy), Strada Comunale (Italian language, Italian for "municipal road"; "strade comunali"), abbreviated SC, is an Italian road that is maintained by ''comune'', hence the name. They can be roads owned by ''comune'' (inside population centers) or roads managed by the ''comune'' (outside population centers). The category of strade comunali includes extra-urban roads considered to be of municipal importance, all urban roads as well as the urban sections of State highways (Italy), state, Regional road (Italy), regional or Provincial road (Italy), provincial roads, which pass through centers with 10,000 or more inhabitants. The urban sections of state, regional or provincial roads that pass through towns with fewer than 10,000 inhabitants are not municipal. Strade comunali within inhabited centers can be classified from a construction-technical point of view either as urban roads (type D and E) or as local roads (type F). Extra-urban municipal roads (outside inhabited centers) can be technically classified as ''strade extraurbane principali'' (type B; "main extra-urban roads"), ''strade extraurbane secondarie'' (type C; "secondary extra-urban roads"), ''strade urbane di scorrimento'' (type D; "urban traffic roads") or ''strada locale'' (type F; local roads).


Other classifications

These classifications are not provided for by the Italian
traffic code Traffic codes are laws that generally include provisions relating to the establishment of authority and enforcement procedures, statement of the rules of the road, and other safety provisions. Administrative regulations for driver licensing, v ...
.


Major communication road

In Italy, some roads of national importance are called ''strada di grande comunicazione'' (abbreviated to SGC; "major communication roads"), an expression coined by the Touring Club Italiano and used in its maps and publications since the 1920s. Law no. 126 of 12 February 1958, as amended by law no. 167 of 9 April 1971, classified state roads either as major trunk roads or as ordinary state roads. For law n. 531 of 12 August 1982 (GU no. 223 of 14/08/1982), the main roads were classified as motorways, Alpine tunnels, motorway junctions, and roads that connect the main road network with the neighboring states, roads that constitute the major routes of national traffic (including Sicily and Sardinia), roads that constitute the main inter-regional connections and roads connecting to the first category ports and the most important airports. The acronym SGC is not used to identify other types of roads (as is the case with the acronyms A, SS, SR, SP) but is used in address documents.


Superstrada

A ''superstrada'' ("super road") is a fast road, often with separate carriageways in each direction, reserved for the circulation of motor vehicles and without at-grade intersections and urban crossings. The colloquial classification of ''superstrada'' refers to all roads classified ''technically'' as main extra-urban roads and, in general, to secondary two-lane extra-urban roads.


European classification

Some Italian roads, if they are part of the International E-road network, are also identified by another alphanumeric abbreviation. This acronym is made up of the letter "E" and one or two digits. The symbol used is a rectangle with a green background with the acronym in white. This classification, which evaluates the importance (being neither a technical nor an administrative classification) of the road in the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
, complements the usual Italian ones. European road acronyms are mostly absent or reported inorganically on signs in Italy. The European classification is foreseen by the Italian traffic code which defines it as additional.


Toll roads

In Italy the only
toll road A toll road, also known as a turnpike or tollway, is a public or private road for which a fee (or ''Toll (fee), toll'') is assessed for passage. It is a form of road pricing typically implemented to help recoup the costs of road construction and ...
s are the ''autostrada, autostrade'' (Italian for motorways). Major exceptions are the beltways around some larger cities (''tangenziali'') which are not part of a thoroughfare motorway, and the section of the A3 motorway between
Salerno Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
and
Reggio di Calabria Reggio di Calabria (; ), commonly and officially referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria as well as the seat of the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria. As of 2025, it has 168,572 ...
which is operated by the government-owned ANAS. Both are
toll Toll may refer to: Transportation * Toll (fee) a fee charged for the use of a road or waterway ** Toll road, a type of road which for which payment is required for passage ** Road pricing, the modern practice of charging for road use ** Road to ...
free. On Italian motorways, the toll applies to almost all motorways not managed by
Anas ''Anas'' is a genus of dabbling ducks. It includes the pintails, most teals, and the mallard and its close relatives. It formerly included additional species but following the publication of a molecular phylogenetic study in 2009 the genus was s ...
. The collection of motorway tolls, from a tariff point of view, is managed mainly in two ways: either through the "closed motorway system" (km travelled) or through the "open motorway system" (flat-rate toll).


Waterways

Italy has of navigable waterways for various types of commercial traffic, although of limited overall value. In the northern regions of
Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...
and
Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...
, commuter ferry boats operate on Lake Garda and
Lake Como Lake Como ( , ) also known as Lario, is a lake of glacial origin in Lombardy, Italy. It has an area of , making it the third-largest lake in Italy, after Lake Garda and Lake Maggiore. At over deep, it is one of the deepest lakes in Europe. ...
to connect towns and villages at both sides of the lakes. The waterways in Venice, including the Grand Canal, serve as the vital transportation network for local residents and tourists. Frequent shuttle ferries (''vaporetta'') connect different points on the main island of Venice and other outlying islands of the lagoon. In addition, there are direct shuttle boats between Venice and the Venice Marco Polo Airport.


Ports and harbours

Italy has been the final destination of the
Silk Road The Silk Road was a network of Asian trade routes active from the second century BCE until the mid-15th century. Spanning over , it played a central role in facilitating economic, cultural, political, and religious interactions between the ...
for many centuries. In particular, the construction of the Suez Canal intensified sea trade with East Africa and Asia from the 19th century. Since the end of the Cold War and increasing European integration, the trade relations, which were often interrupted in the 20th century, have intensified again. Because of its long seacoast, Italy also has many harbors for the transportation of both goods and passengers. In 2004 there were 43 major seaports including the
Port of Genoa The Port of Genoa is one of the most important seaports in Italy. With a trade volume of 51.6 million tonnes, it is the busiest port of Italy after the port of Trieste by cargo tonnage. Notably the port was used for dismantling the ''Costa Conco ...
, the country's largest and the third busiest by cargo tonnage in the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea ( ) is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the east by the Levant in West Asia, on the north by Anatolia in West Asia and Southern Eur ...
. Due to the increasing importance of the maritime Silk Road with its connections to Asia and East Africa, the Italian ports for Central and
Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the Europe, European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural and socio-economic connotations. Its eastern boundary is marked by the Ural Mountain ...
have become important in recent years. In addition, the trade in goods is shifting from the European northern ports to the ports of the Mediterranean Sea due to the considerable time savings and environmental protection. In particular, the deep water port of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
in the northernmost part of the Mediterranean Sea is the target of Italian, Asian and European investments.


Air transport


Airlines

Since October 2021, Italy's
flag carrier A flag carrier is a transport company, such as an airline or shipping company, that, being locally registered in a given sovereign state, enjoys preferential rights or privileges accorded by that government for international operations. Histo ...
airline is
ITA Airways Italia Trasporto Aereo S.p.A. (), doing business as ITA Airways, is the flag carrier of Italy. It is owned by the government of Italy, via the Ministry of Economy and Finance, and Lufthansa Group. The airline was founded in 2020 as a suc ...
, which took over the brand, the IATA ticketing code, and many assets belonging to the former flag carrier
Alitalia Alitalia - Società Aerea Italiana S.p.A., operating as Alitalia (), was an Italian airline which was once the flag carrier and largest airline of Italy. The company had its head office in Fiumicino, in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital. ...
, after its bankruptcy. ITA Airways serves 44 destinations () and also operates the former Alitalia regional subsidiary, Alitalia CityLiner. The country also has
regional airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...
s (such as
Air Dolomiti Air Dolomiti S.p.A. L.A.R.E (''Linee Aeree Regionali Europee'') is an Italian regional airline, wholly-owned by Lufthansa. It is a member of Lufthansa Regional and has its head office in Dossobuono, Villafranca di Verona. Its main bases are at Mu ...
), low-cost carriers, and Charter and leisure carriers (including Neos,
Blue Panorama Airlines Blue Panorama Airlines S.p.A. was an Italian airline headquartered in Fiumicino operating scheduled and charter flights mostly to domestic and international leisure destinations. As of late 2021, the airline was in the process to change its bran ...
and Poste Air Cargo). Major Italian cargo operators are ITA Airways Cargo and Cargolux Italia. In 2012 there were 130 airports in Italy, including the two hubs of
Malpensa International Airport Milan Malpensa Airport "Silvio Berlusconi" is an international airport in Ferno, in the Province of Varese, Lombardy, Italy. It is the largest airport in northern Italy, serving Lombardy, Piedmont, and Liguria, as well as the Swiss canton of T ...
in Milan and Leonardo da Vinci International Airport in Rome.


Airports

Italy is the fifth in Europe by number of passengers by air transport, with about 148 million passengers or about 10% of the European total in 2011. Most of passengers in Italy are on international flights (57%). A big share of domestic flights connect the major islands (
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...
and Sicily) to the mainland. Domestic flights between major Italian cities as
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
and
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
still play a relevant role but are declining since the opening of the High-speed rail in Italy, Italian high-speed rail network in recent years. Italy has a total as of 130 airports in 2012, of which 99 have paved runways: *''over :'' 9 *'':'' 31 *'':'' 18 *'':'' 29 *''under :'' 12 Airports - with unpaved runways in 2012: *''total:'' 31 *'':'' 1 *'':'' 11 *''under :'' 19


Busiest airports

This is a list of the top ten busiest airports in Italy in 2017.


Buses, trams and coaches


Local buses

Local buses are usually divided into urban (''urbano'') and suburban (''interurbano'' or ''extraurbano'') lines.


Trolleybuses

Many Italian cities have trolleybus networks, which were particularly promulgated by the government of Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. Though many trolleybus networks were decommissioned in the late 20th century, major Italian cities that continue to operate trolleybus networks, or have built new ones, include Trolleybuses in Ancona, Ancona, Trolleybuses in Avellino, Avellino, Trolleybuses in Bologna, Bologna, Trolleybuses in Cagliari, Cagliari, Trolleybuses in Chieti, Chieti, Trolleybuses in Genoa, Genoa, Trolleybuses in La Spezia, La Spezia, Trolleybuses in Lecce, Lecce, Trolleybuses in Milan, Milan, Trolleybuses in Modena, Modena, Trolleybuses in Naples, Naples, Trolleybuses in Parma, Parma, Trolleybuses in Rimini, Rimini, Trolleybuses in Rome, Rome, and Trolleybuses in Sanremo, Sanremo.


Coaches

Italy does not have a nationwide coach operator. Many coach companies operate regionally, and particularly offer intercity connections and airport shuttle services. The largest nationwide coach operators include Baltour, Marinobus, Buscenter.it, Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori, .italo, and FlixBus.


Tram

13 cities have tram system: * Bergamo–Albino light rail * Cagliari light rail * Trams in Florence * Trams in Messina * Trams in Mestre * Trams in Milan * Trams in Naples * Trams in Padua * Trams in Palermo * Trams in Rome * Metrosassari, Trams in Sassari * Trams in Turin * Trieste–Opicina tramway


See also

* Economy of Italy * History of Italy * Plug-in electric vehicles in Italy * Renewable energy in Italy * Tourism in Italy


References


External links

{{Transportation in Europe Transport in Italy,