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After the hypothesis of the 24-hour metro, which we exposed following our thematic focus, Rome’s mobility commission addressed the possibility of extending the service hours on the FL1 railway line that connects Fiumicino airport to the city.
A need that essentially arises from the recovery of night-time air traffic driven by the very strong demand for tourism to and from the Capital and due to structural changes in the market.
For their part, the representatives of the Italian Railway Network explained that, in the absence of redundant infrastructure, it is not possible to avoid carrying out nightly maintenance on the only two existing tracks to and from Fiumicino. A situation that makes the requested extension of the service until 1.30 am or anticipated to 4.30 am impossible.
In short, a situation completely similar to that which we have already described for our metros and on which politics should intervene with structural projects. In this regard, the quadrupling of the railway line between Parco Leonardo and the airport, which is part of the Rome-Lido branch envisaged by the PUMS, could solve the aforementioned maintenance problems.
But precisely for this reason, given and above all that the E line has left the horizons of the current administration in favor of the Metromare project, it will not be possible in the short term to accommodate the request for a longer railway service. The ball passes, once again, to our city’s transport planning policies.
