History of Railways in Italy
Encyclopedia
Origins
Railways were introduced in Italy when it was still a divided country.The first line to be built on the peninsula was the Naples–Portici line, in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, commonly known as the Two Sicilies even before formally coming into being, was the largest and wealthiest of the Italian states before Italian unification...
, which was 7.640 km long and was inaugurated on October 3, 1839, nine years after the world's first "modern" inter-city railway, the Liverpool and Manchester Railway
Liverpool and Manchester Railway
The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world's first inter-city passenger railway in which all the trains were timetabled and were hauled for most of the distance solely by steam locomotives. The line opened on 15 September 1830 and ran between the cities of Liverpool and Manchester in North...
. The following year the firm Holzammer of Bolzano was granted the "Imperial-Royal privilege" to build the Milano–Monza line (12 km), in the then Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, a puppet state of the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
.
On request of the Milanese and Venetian industries, but also for the already clear military importance, construction of the Milan–Venice line was also begun. In 1842 the Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
-Mestre
Mestre
Mestre is a city part of the comune of Venice, in Veneto, northern Italy.The city is connected to Venice by a large rail and road bridge, called Ponte della Libertà ....
stretch of 32 km was inaugurated, followed in 1846 by the Milan-Treviglio
Treviglio
Treviglio is a town and comune in the province of Bergamo, in Lombardy, northern Italy. It lies 20 km south of the capital city, in the lower territory called "Bassa" marked by the Adda and the Serio rivers....
(32 km) and Padua-Vicenza
Vicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
(30 km), as well as the bridge spanning the lagoon of Venice.
In the Kingdom of Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
(comprising Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
and Liguria
Liguria
Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. Its capital is Genoa. It is a popular region with tourists for its beautiful beaches, picturesque little towns, and good food.-Geography:...
), King Charles Albert
Charles Albert of Sardinia
Charles Albert was the King of Piedmont-Sardinia from 1831 to 1849. He succeeded his distant cousin Charles Felix, and his name is bound with the first Italian statute and the First War of Independence...
ordered on July 18, 1844 the construction of the Turin–Genoa railway, which was inaugurated on December 6, 1853. This was followed by the opening of other sections which connected with France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Lombardy-Venetia.
A locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
factory was also founded in Genoa, in order to avoid the English monopoly in the field. This became the modern Ansaldo
Gio. Ansaldo & C.
Ansaldo was one of Italy's oldest and most important engineering companies, existing for 140 years from 1853 to 1993.-From foundation to World War I:...
.
In Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, the Duke of Lucca signed the concession for the a Lucca–Pisa railway, while, in 1845, the Duchy of Parma
Duchy of Parma
The Duchy of Parma was created in 1545 from that part of the Duchy of Milan south of the Po River, as a fief for Pope Paul III's illegitimate son, Pier Luigi Farnese, centered on the city of Parma....
began the construction of two lines towards Piacenza
Piacenza
Piacenza is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...
and Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
. In the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
, where Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI , born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari, named Mauro as a member of the religious order of the Camaldolese, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1831 to 1846...
had declared the railways being a devilish work, some lines where begun in 1846 under Pius IX with the Rome and Frascati Rail Road
Rome and Frascati Rail Road
The Rome–Frascati railway line is one of the oldest railways in Italy It was the first railway in the Papal State, opening in 1856, at 20 km in length.- History :...
then the Rome and Civitavecchia Rail Road
Rome and Civitavecchia Rail Road
The Rome–Civitavecchia railway line is one of the oldest railways in Italy, in the Papal States, opening in 1859 and is 72.6 km long. The line now forms part of the Pisa–Rome line.- History :...
.
In the course of the Wars of Italian Independence, railways proved to be instrumental in the defeat of Charles Albert's army at Peschiera, as well as in the Austrian ones at Palestro
Battle of Palestro
The Battle of Palestro was fought on 30/31 May 1859 between the Austrian Empire and the combined forces of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont and France. The Franco-Piedmontese forces were victorious...
and Magenta
Battle of Magenta
The Battle of Magenta was fought on June 4, 1859 during the Second Italian War of Independence, resulting in a French-Sardinian victory under Napoleon III against the Austrians under Marshal Ferencz Gyulai....
: in the latter, French troops were able to reach quickly the battlefield thanks to the new transportation mean, and established a defence line right on the ballast
Track ballast
Track ballast forms the trackbed upon which railway sleepers or railroad ties are laid. It is packed between, below, and around the ties. It is used to facilitate drainage of water, to distribute the load from the railroad ties, and also to keep down vegetation that might interfere with the track...
of the line.
Under unified Italy
At the creation of the unified Kingdom of Italy, railroads in the country were the following:| Piedmont | 850 km |
| Lombardy-Venetia | 522 km |
| Tuscany | 257 km |
| Papal State | 317 km (year 1870) |
for a total of 2,370 km .
Lines in the Papal States were still in construction, while Sicily
Sicily
Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
had its first, short railroad only in 1863 (Palermo
Palermo
Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
-Bagheria
Bagheria
Bagheria is a town and comune in the Province of Palermo in Sicily, Italy.-Etymology:According to some sources, the name Bagheria originates from the Phoenician term Bayharia meaning "land that descends toward the sea." Other sources claim that it derives from the Arabic Bāb al-Gerib, or "windy...
). The existing lines did not form an organized net: property of the line was statal or private, the latter in turn for private or statal use. A first organic structure began to be created in 1865 with the connections of the existing sections. In order to promote the industrial development, the government entrusted the existing lines to five concessionaires:
- SFAISocietà per le strade ferrate dell'Alta ItaliaThe Società per le strade ferrate dell'Alta Italia was an Italian railway company from 1865 to 1885.It was established on 1 July 1865 with miles of line it acquired from the state railway of the Kingdom of Sardinia , the part of the state railway of the former Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia that...
(Società per le strade ferrate dell'Alta Italia) - SFRSocietà per le Strade Ferrate RomaneThe Società per le strade ferrate romane was an Italian railway company from 1865 to 1885.The Società Generalle delle Strade Ferrate Romane was formed in 1860 from a merger of the Società Pio Centrale , builder of the Rome–Civitavecchia railway and the Società Pio Latina The Società per le strade...
(Società per le strade ferrate romane) - SFMSocietà per le Strade Ferrate MeridionaliThe Società per le Strade Ferrate Meridionali was an Italian railway company established in 1862. In 1885 it took the control of the so-called "Rete Adriatica"...
(Società per le Strade Ferrate Meridionali) - Società Vittorio Emanuele
- Società Reale delle ferrovie sarde.
The war of 1866 caused great disruption to the industrial activities, including those of the railway companies, which went nearly bankrupt, and a state intervention was needed to save them. In 1870 the last remnant of Papal States was also annexed to Italy: it comprised the railway connection from Rome to Frascati
Frascati
Frascati is a town and comune in the province of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated with science, being the location of several international scientific...
, Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometers west-north-west of Rome, across the Mignone river. The harbor is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse...
, Terni
Terni
Terni is a city in southern Umbria, central Italy, capital of the province of Terni, located in the plain of the Nera river. It is 104 km N of Rome, 36 km NW of Rieti, and 29 km S of Spoleto.-History:...
and Cassino
Cassino
Cassino is a comune in the province of Frosinone, Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio.Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Rapido and Liri rivers...
(through Velletri
Velletri
Velletri is an Italian town of 53,298 inhabitants. It is a comune in the province of Rome, on the Alban Hills, in Lazio - Italy. It is bounded by other communes of Rocca di Papa, Lariano, Cisterna di Latina, Artena, Aprilia, Nemi, Genzano di Roma, Lanuvio...
). In 1872 there were in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
c. 7,000 km of railroads, entrusted to the existing societies in the following quantities:
| SFAI | 3,006 km |
| SFR | 1,586 |
| SFM | 1,327 |
| Società per le Strade Ferrate Calabro-Sicule | 551 km |
Other, secondary lines were operated by minor companies. After the unification construction of new lines was boosted: in 1875, with the of the section Orte
Orte
Orte is a comune in the province of Viterbo, in the Italian region Latium Lazio, located about 60 km north of Rome and about 24 km east of Viterbo. As of 31 December 2006, Orte had a population of 8,364....
-Orvieto
Orvieto
Orvieto is a city and comune in Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff...
, the direct Florence–Rome line was completed, reducing the trip of the former route passing through Foligno
Foligno
Foligno is an ancient town of Italy in the province of Perugia in east central Umbria, on the Topino river where it leaves the Apennines and enters the wide plain of the Clitunno river system...
-Terontola. In 1875 a proposal of the Italian government to form a single company out of the existing concessionaires was refused by the Italian Parliament, provoking also the fall of the government. In the meantime the economical situation of the secondary companies continued to get worse, enhancing the failure of the concessionaire regime when, at the same time, in the whole Europe the tendency to aggregate all railways into a single, state-owned company became predominant. This, among the other benefit, granted the fulfillment of social exigences in transportation, that a strictly profit-oriented policy could not afford.
The Italian government was however slow to react, and only in 1878 and 1880, respectively, the largely deficitaire SFAI and SFR went under state administration.
The convenzioni of 1884
Despite this situation, in 1884 the Italian Parliament issued a commission study in which it was declared preferable a private administration of railways. The Convenzioni (concessions) between Italy and the three main remaining private companies were signed on April 23, 1884, for a period of 60 years. SFM was assigned the lines on the Adriatic Sea (Rete Adriatica, Italian for Adriatic Network), while the Società per le Strade Ferrate del MediterraneoSocietà per le Strade Ferrate del Mediterraneo
The Società per le Strade Ferrate del Mediterraneo , normally known as the Rete Mediterranea , was an Italian railway company from 1885 to 1905....
and the Società delle Ferrovia della Sicilia received, respectively, the Rete Mediterranea (Mediterranean Network, lines facing the Ligurian
Ligurian Sea
The Ligurian Sea is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Italian Riviera and the island of Corsica. The sea is probably named after the ancient Ligures people.-Geography:...
, Ionian
Ionian Sea
The Ionian Sea , is an arm of the Mediterranean Sea, south of the Adriatic Sea. It is bounded by southern Italy including Calabria, Sicily and the Salento peninsula to the west, southern Albania to the north, and a large number of Greek islands, including Corfu, Zante, Kephalonia, Ithaka, and...
and Tyrrhenian Sea
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....
s) and the Rete Sicula (Sicilian Network). The companies received in total 8,510 km of railways, under the vigilance of the Ministry of the Public Works, through a General Inspectorate for Railroads, which replaced the previous position of the General Royal Commissariate.
However, this move not only failed to improve the situation of railways, hampering the economical development and the tourism as well, but worsened it further. Liabilities of the secondary lines overcame greatly the profits from the few remaining ones, and absorbed all the state subsidies. By the 1880s the Italian railways amounted to 10,510 km.
The Ferrovie dello Stato
The private companies were definitively bought back by the Italian state on July 1, 1905, with the creation of the Ferrovie dello StatoFerrovie dello Stato
Ferrovie dello Stato is a government-owned holding which manage infrastructure and service on the Italian rail network. The subsidiary Trenitalia is the main rail operator in Italy.-Organization:Ferrovie dello Stato subsidiaries are:...
(State Railways), or FS, with a total of 10,557 km of lines, of which it already owned 9686 km (6,019 mi). The move was completed the following year with the acquisition of the remaining SFM network: by then FS possessed 13,075 km of lines, 1,917 with double tracks.
A General Director was appointed, the Piedmontese engineer Riccardo Bianchi, who had held the same position for the Ferrovie Sicule. A General Direction was created, with 13 Central Services and 2 General Inspectorates, based in Rome. For peripherical operations 8 Compartmental Directions were created.
A capable and respected organizer, he had received a grievous heritage from the previous organizational chaos. The worst problem was the rolling stock: FS had 2,664 steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
s, 738 with more than 30 years of service; passenger cars were 6,985, mostly older than 30 years; freight cars were 52,778, owith one fifth older than 40 years. The first urgent measure was construction in 1905-06, of 567 new locomotives, 1,244 passenger cars (including the first provided with bogie
Bogie
A bogie is a wheeled wagon or trolley. In mechanics terms, a bogie is a chassis or framework carrying wheels, attached to a vehicle. It can be fixed in place, as on a cargo truck, mounted on a swivel, as on a railway carriage/car or locomotive, or sprung as in the suspension of a caterpillar...
s) and 20,263 freight cars.
Under Bianchi the FS rapidly modernised; the semaphore system was introduced; and centralized hydrodynamic switches
Railroad switch
A railroad switch, turnout or [set of] points is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction....
and signals were added in the main stations, which were updated or built from scratch. Electrification, already used on the lines around Varese
Varese
Varese is a town and comune in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 55 km north of Milan.It is the capital of the Province of Varese. The hinterland or urban part of the city is called Varesotto.- Geography :...
and in Valtellina
Valtellina
Valtellina or the Valtelline valley ; is a valley in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, bordering Switzerland. Today it is known for its skiing, its hot spring spas, its cheeses and its wines...
, was expanded, particularly in the north of Italy, using the three phase AC system.
Bianchi's direction lasted for 10 years. Under his successor, ing. De Cornè, the FS was involved in the Italian effort in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
(from May 24, 1915). The company suffered much destruction, and after the end of the conflict, had new problems from the incorporation of lines in the new territories lost by Austria, with different equipment and rules.
Fascist era
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. The most important programme was that of the Rome-Naples and Bologna–Florence direttissimas ("most direct lines"): the first reduced the travel time from the two cities by an hour and a half; the second, announced proudly as "constructing Fascism
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
", included the second longest tunnel in the world at the time. Electrification on 3,000 V direct current was introduced, which later supplanted the existing three-phase system. Other improvements included automatic blocks, light signals, construction of numerous main stations (Milan Central, Napoli Mergellina, Roma Ostiense and others) and other technical modernisations.
The rolling stock was enhanced from 1933 by DMU
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
and EMU, nicknamed Littorine from the lictor
Lictor
The lictor was a member of a special class of Roman civil servant, with special tasks of attending and guarding magistrates of the Roman Republic and Empire who held imperium, the right and power to command; essentially, a bodyguard...
ial symbols of the Fascist regime. The Italian EMUs (elettrotreni), in particular, started the traditional vanguard position of Italy in the field: on 6 December 1937 an ETR 200
ETR 200
The ETR 200 is an Italian electric multiple unit introduced in 1936.-Development:In the 1930s the Italian state railways, Ferrovie dello Stato, electrified the main line Milan-Bologna-Florence-Rome-Naples and needed a fast train to use on it and on other newly-electrified ones...
travelled on the Rome-Naples line at a speed of 201 km/h (125 mph) in the Campoleone-Cisterna
Cisterna
A cisterna comprises a flattened membrane disk that makes up the Golgi apparatus. A typical Golgi has anywhere from 3 to 7 cisternae stacked upon each other like a stack of dinner plates, but there are usually around 6...
section. Two years later the same train reached 203 km/h (126 mph) on the Milan–Florence line.
In this period food trains made up of refrigerated wagons started to run from southern to northern Italy, and abroad.
In this period the popular motto "durante il Fascismo i treni arrivavano in orario" ("during Fascism the trains arrived on time") became widespread. This was due to several factors: the still uncongested lines, the updated stock, but also to the severe discipline to which the engine-drivers were subjected; in particular, they had to pay personally for the delays of the trains they drove.
The Ferrovie dello Stato were moved from the Ministry of Public Works to the newly formed Ministry of Transports.
From World War II to 1970s
The war left railways in Italy in a disrupted state. Entire lines were out of work and much of the rolling stock destroyed. Thanks to the Marshall PlanMarshall Plan
The Marshall Plan was the large-scale American program to aid Europe where the United States gave monetary support to help rebuild European economies after the end of World War II in order to combat the spread of Soviet communism. The plan was in operation for four years beginning in April 1948...
, in the following years they could be rebuilt, although the possibility of reorganizing the network was missed due to myopic policies. The fundamental line Battipaglia
Battipaglia
Battipaglia is a town and comune in the province of Salerno in the Campania region of south-western Italy, with some 51,000 inhabitants.- History :The birth of the comune of Battipaglia was officialised by a Royal Decree on 28 March 1929...
-Reggio Calabria
Reggio Calabria
Reggio di Calabria , commonly known as Reggio Calabria or Reggio, is the biggest city and the most populated comune of Calabria, southern Italy, and is the capital of the Province of Reggio Calabria and seat of the Council of Calabrian government.Reggio is located on the "toe" of the Italian...
was doubled, while a program of updating of infrastructures, superstructures, services, colour-light signalling and cars were updated or extended. Also the three-phase lines were gradually turned into standard 3,000 V dc lines.
Increasing numbers of steam locomotives were replaced by electric or diesel ones; in the 1960s also the first unified passenger cars appeared and the first attempts of interoperability with foreign companies were started, culminating in the creation of Trans Europe Express services.
More modern ferries for the service over the Strait of Messina
Strait of Messina
The Strait of Messina is the narrow passage between the eastern tip of Sicily and the southern tip of Calabria in the south of Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian Sea with the Ionian Sea, within the central Mediterranean...
were introduced and, in 1961, a similar service begun to Sardinia
Sardinia
Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, although not providing transport of railways cars.
High speed projects
In the 1960s the FS started an innovative project for high speed trains. E444FS Class E444
The FS E444 is a class of Italian railways electric locomotives. They were introduced in the course of the 1960 until 1975. Starting from 1995, all E444s were upgraded as E444R.The locomotives are nicknamed Tartaruga .-E444 standard:...
locomotives were the first standard locomotives capable of 200 km/h of speed, while an ALe 601 EMU reached a speed of 240 km/h during a test. Other EMUs, such as the ETR 220, ETR 250 and ETR 300
ETR 300
ETR 300, also known as Settebello, is a series of Italian fast EMU trains formerly operated by Ferrovie dello Stato. Thanks to its aerodynamically low-drag profile, it boasted a maximum speed of 200 km/h, with a power output of 2600 kW.-External links:**...
were also updated for speeds up to 200 km/h. Also the braking systems of cars were updated to fit the increased travelling speeds.
On June 25, 1970, works for the Florence–Rome Direttissima, the first high-speed line in Italy, were started. They included the 5,375 m bridge on the Paglia river
Paglia (river)
The Paglia is an Italian river and a tributary of the Tiber.It rises on the southern slopes of Monte Amiata on the Plain of Rena near the town of Abbadia San Salvatore. It flows through the provinces of Siena, Viterbo and Terni, and flows into the Tiber to the south-east of Orvieto. It is...
, then the longest in Europe. However, the works were completed only in the early 1990s.
In 1975 a crack program for a widespread updating of the rolling stock was launched. However, as an it was decided to put more emphasis on local traffic, this caused a shifting of resources from the ongoing high speed projects, with their subsequent slowing or, in some cases, total abandonment. Therefore, 160 E656
FS Class E656
The Class E656 is an Italian articulated rheostatic-type electric locomotive built from 1973 to 1989. An evolution of the E646/5, they are all-purpose locomotives, and have been used on every kind of train, ranging from freight to intercity passenger trasport.The E656 is nicknamed "Caimano" .-...
electric and 35 D345
FS Class D345
The FS Class D345 is a class of diesel-electric locomotive used in Italy, introduced in the 1970s and still in service.- History :After the positive experience with class D343, in 1970 Italian state railways, Ferrovie dello Stato, ordered further 70 diesel locomotives with some minor improvements...
locomotives for short-medium range traffic were acquired, together with 80 EMUs of the ALe 801 and ALe 940 classes, 120 ALn 660 DMU
Diesel multiple unit
A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple unit train consisting of multiple carriages powered by one or more on-board diesel engines. They may also be referred to as a railcar or railmotor, depending on country.-Design:...
s. Some 1,000 much-needed passenger and 7,000 freight new cars were also ordered.
From 1980s onwards
ETR 450
ETR 450 was the first series Italian tilting train .The Pendolino project was started in the 1970s by FIAT Ferroviaria, but also absorbed technology from tilting train experiments from elsewhere, most notably the British Advanced Passenger Trains, FIAT having bought the patents...
and ETR 500
ETR 500
ETR 500 is a family of Italian high-speed trains introduced in 1993.Designed under the aegis of the Ferrovie dello Stato , it is now operated by Trenitalia on RFI tracks.-History:...
, the latter capable of speed up to 300 km/h. Works on the high-speed lines continued, the Rome-Naples being opened in 2005. Other lines are under construction.
In 2000 FS became an holding company which controls various companies among which there is Trenitalia
Trenitalia
Trenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. Trenitalia is owned by Ferrovie dello Stato, itself owned by the Italian Government. It was created in 2000 following the EU directive on the deregulation of rail transport.-Passenger transport:...
, a limited society. The various service were divided into three different companies for long range (FS Divisione Passeggeri), local range (FS Regionale) and freight (FS Cargo), while numerous other sub-companies were created. Property of the railroad was assigned to RFI (Rete Ferroviaria Italiana
Rete Ferroviaria Italiana
Rete Ferroviaria Italiana is an Italian company fully owned by Ferrovie dello Stato . RFI is the owner of Italy's railway network, it sets train paths, provides signalling, provides maintenance and other services for the railway network...
) from 2001 (an FS company as well).
Today railways in Italy continue to experience the difficulties and incongruousness inherited from past times. Modern high-speed lines, trains and locomotives (E402
FS Class E402
E402A/B is a class of electric locomotives mainly used on high speed passenger trains by the Italian railway company FS Trenitalia.- History :...
) are paired by others, especially in southern Italy, in which the transportation speed is still comparable to that of the early 19th century. The freight sector has only recently showed signs of recovery from the long-term depressed state it has lived in through the 20th century. Commuter services are often causes of polemics due to poor services; in several cases necessary lines survive only through support of local authorities.
The liberalization of the market has brought the appearance of only a small number of other companies.
Railways companies certified for operation in Italy
From 2000
- Ferrovie dello StatoFerrovie dello StatoFerrovie dello Stato is a government-owned holding which manage infrastructure and service on the Italian rail network. The subsidiary Trenitalia is the main rail operator in Italy.-Organization:Ferrovie dello Stato subsidiaries are:...
S.p. A. - TrenitaliaTrenitaliaTrenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. Trenitalia is owned by Ferrovie dello Stato, itself owned by the Italian Government. It was created in 2000 following the EU directive on the deregulation of rail transport.-Passenger transport:...
S.p. A.
From 2001
- MetronapoliMetronapoliMetronapoli SpA is an Italian company responsible for the provision of public transport in the city of Naples, and its primary function is the operation and maintenance of the Naples Metro system. It was founded on 26 July 2000 and became operational on 1 February 2001...
S.p. A. - Ferrovie Nord MilanoFerrovie Nord Milano450px|thumb|Map of the main branch of the FNM lines. FNM operates also the [[Brescia]]-[[Edolo]] railway in eastern [[Lombardy]], not shown in map.Ferrovie Nord Milano is an Italian public transport company: the second largest railway company in Italy. It operates primarily in the northern Italian...
Esercizio S.p. A. - Rail Traction Company S.p. A.
From 2002
- Del Fungo Giera Servizi Ferroviari S.p. A.
- Gruppo Torinese TrasportiGruppo Torinese TrasportiThe Gruppo Torinese Trasporti is a public benefit corporation responsible for public transportation in the provinces of Turin, Alessandria, Cuneo and Asti...
S.p. A.(ex SATTISattiThe Satti is a Rajput tribe of Punjab, India/Pakistan. They are one of the main tribes of India and Pakistan Rawalpindi District.-Religion:...
) - SERFER Servizi Ferroviari S.r.l.
- HupacHupacHupac is a railway company in Switzerland. Hupac's Shuttle Net has 108 intermodal trains per day across Europe. Hupac also offers a rolling highway from Basel to Lugano. In 2009, volumes carried fell by 13.5%, to 607,284 road consignments; but profit increased...
S.p. A.
From 2003
- Ferrovie Emilia RomagnaFerrovie Emilia RomagnaFerrovie Emilia Romagna is a secondary bus and railway company of Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy.The company was formed in 1997 by acquisition by the Emilia-Romagna region of four previous state-owned railway companies:...
S.r.l. - La Ferroviaria Italiana S.p. A.
- Cargo Nord S.r.l.
- Ferrovie Adriatico Sangritana S.r.l.
- Sistemi Territoriali S.p. A.
- Strade Ferrate del Mediterraneo S.r.l.
- Swiss Rail Cargo Italy S.r.l.
From 2004
- SBB Cargo Italia S.r.l.
- Ferrovie Nord Cargo S.r.l.
- Azienda Consorziale Trasporti di Reggio Emilia
- Ferrovia Alifana e Benevento Napoli S.r.l.
- Ferrovie Nord MilanoFerrovie Nord Milano450px|thumb|Map of the main branch of the FNM lines. FNM operates also the [[Brescia]]-[[Edolo]] railway in eastern [[Lombardy]], not shown in map.Ferrovie Nord Milano is an Italian public transport company: the second largest railway company in Italy. It operates primarily in the northern Italian...
Trasporti S.r.l.
From 2005
- Trasporto Ferroviario Toscano S.p. A. (La Ferroviaria Italiana S.p. A.)
- Ferrovie Centrali Umbre S.r.l.
- Railion Italia S.r.l. (ex S.F.M.)
- Rail One S.p. A.
- Azienda Trasporti Collettivi e Mobilità S.p. A.
- A.T.C. Bologna S.p. A.
- Monferail S.r.l.
From 2006
- SAD - Trasporto Locale S.p. A.
- Nord Cargo S.r.l. (ex Ferrovie Nord Cargo S.r.l.)
- ArenawaysArenawaysArenaways is an open-access railway operator in Italy. In November 2010, it began passenger operations between Milan and Turin, competing with national monopoly operator Trenitalia...
S.p.A
See also
- Ferrovie dello StatoFerrovie dello StatoFerrovie dello Stato is a government-owned holding which manage infrastructure and service on the Italian rail network. The subsidiary Trenitalia is the main rail operator in Italy.-Organization:Ferrovie dello Stato subsidiaries are:...
- Railway stations in ItalyRailway stations in ItalyRailway stations in Italy are maintained and operated by the RFI division of Ferrovie dello Stato Group. A minor part of them is operated by private and regional companies, conceded by the state.-Classification:...
- TrenitaliaTrenitaliaTrenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. Trenitalia is owned by Ferrovie dello Stato, itself owned by the Italian Government. It was created in 2000 following the EU directive on the deregulation of rail transport.-Passenger transport:...
- Treno Alta VelocitàTreno Alta VelocitàTreno Alta Velocità SpA is special purpose entity owned by RFI for the planning and construction of a high-speed network in Italy.-Purpose:...