After years of reduced service linked to safety restrictions on single-track sections operated with legacy signalling, Lazio is moving to overhaul the Rome–Civita Castellana–Viterbo line in Italy under a €160m agreement to install ERTMS Level 2.
The Lazio Region has signed a €160 million agreement with Italy’s infra manager Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) and regional infrastructure company Astral to modernise the Rome–Civita Castellana–Viterbo railway line, with the installation of a new ERTMS signalling system at the core of the project.
The funding, drawn from Italy’s FSC 2021–2027 cohesion programme, will be used to upgrade the line’s signalling and associated systems in line with guidance from the Ministry of Infrastructure and Transport and safety regulations issued by ANSFISA, Italy’s national rail safety authority.
Under the convention signed this week, RFI will act as the implementing body for the works, while Astral will cooperate as infrastructure manager. Astral, a Lazio Region-owned company best known for managing regional roads, is also responsible for several former concessionary railways, including the Rome–Viterbo and Rome–Lido lines.
Existing operating constraints
The Rome–Viterbo line is characterised by significant physical and operational constraints. Large sections outside the urban area are single track, with tight curve radii of 100–150 metres, gradients of up to 4%, and maximum speeds generally below 50 km/h. The route also includes numerous public and private level crossings.
From an operational standpoint, the line currently relies on multiple legacy signalling systems. Urban sections use a Train Stop system, while extra-urban sections have historically been operated using telephone-based train working, with station staff verbally authorising movements and recording them in train registers.
Following the 2016 Andria–Corato collision, which occurred on a line operated with telephone block working, Italy’s rail safety regulator ANSFISA introduced stricter rules that came into force in July 2019. On the Rome–Viterbo line, these measures effectively restricted train crossings on single-track sections, contributing to reduced service levels and the long-term substitution of some rail services with buses, particularly on suburban sections, an arrangement that has persisted in the years since.
Scope of ERTMS upgrade
The €160m programme provides for the installation of a new ERTMS Level 2 signalling system, replacing the existing arrangements. According to regional documentation, the Lazio Region has already approved the final design developed by RFI.
In parallel with the signalling upgrade, separate infrastructure projects are under way or planned to increase double-track capacity on parts of the line. A contract is currently advancing a 7 km double-tracking scheme between Riano and Morlupo, which would bring the total length of double track to 19.5 km. A further 11 km double-tracking project between Montebello and Riano is also planned, which would increase double track to 30.5 km and reduce the single-track section to 71.5 km.