«There’s no point in waiting, the bus stop is there for beauty’s sake. Getting around the city by public transport is a problem. Someone should take care of it.” Speaking is Mrs. Iolanda, owner of a flower shop in Corso Garibaldi, she explains that public transport in Sanremo is not reliable and that for some time the trolleybus no longer passes in front of her shop even though the stop remains. «You have to get to Piazza Colombo, everyone starts and stops there. Or go on foot. I don’t know why they don’t remove this stop, sometimes tourists wait here, in vain. It’s a phantom stop. Some even get angry »concludes the lady with a hint of a smile on her face.
To cover just two kilometers of road, from the train station to the central and residential Via Nuvoloni, you have to take two buses. Many people complain, explains the taxi driver in front of the train station, waiting to take tourists to one side or the other of Sanremo: «He doesn’t know how many criticisms I hear every day. It is a city that could provide many services related to city mobility but offers none of this. It is better not to make comparisons with other urban centres, we are very behind in this field” concludes the taxi driver. In fact, there are no shared mobility services, such as car sharing or bike sharing, nor electric scooters, which are popular in many tourist cities. To get around you have to rely on your own means of transport, the moped and the bicycle, the most popular.
Mrs. Anna, who has just arrived in Sanremo from Genoa, is very annoyed: «I am forced to take a taxi when I arrive at the station. I don’t have to go far but it’s best not to rely on public transport. It’s a small fee that I have to pay every time.”
In fact, at the end of the morning, despite many people arriving at the station, the stops on Corso Felice Cavallotti are deserted and within twenty minutes not a single bus can be seen passing by. The owner of a focacceria in Rondò Garibaldi is peremptory: «Sanremo is a small center but when it comes to public transport, we have the same problems as big cities. It’s best not to take the buses here, you risk never arriving. It’s better to get around by scooter.” It is a very widespread leitmotif among people. But even getting around with mopeds can be complicated, explains a boy, sitting in a bar: “It’s not always easy to find parking in the centre, and the police often issue fines.”
The situation does not change if you have to take a bus to go to Ventimiglia or Andora, two extremely popular destinations, especially during the summer period: «Public transport – continues the boy – all leaves from Piazza Colombo. They make many stops, in the summer there are no students but they are always packed, especially those who go to Ventimiglia. Taking the bus every day can only be done if you have no other options. Not to mention the non-EU citizens, there are so many in this area.”
The situation does not improve when the issue of car parking is addressed: «In the center there are few and all paid» explains the waitress of a bar in Corso Matteotti who then concludes: «It is not worth taking the car. I hope that the next administrators will do something to improve this situation.” On this issue, the debate between the mayoral candidates is intense. They spoke of a plan for “smart” parking and discounts for residents, promising an intensification of public transport between the suburbs and the center. But now the citizens of Sanremo are waiting for the facts. —
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