Italy is set to activate ERTMS on the final unequipped section of the Rome–Florence high-speed line in April, completing the rollout of the European signalling system across one of the country’s most important rail corridors.
The European Rail Traffic Management System will be switched on along the Orvieto–Settebagni section, the last remaining stretch of the Rome-Florence line still awaiting the upgrade. To allow the activation to take place, rail traffic on the route will be suspended from midnight on Saturday 11 April until 15:00 on Sunday 12 April, with a reduced service also expected on the morning of Monday 13 April. Regular operations are due to resume on Tuesday 14 April.
The works are part of a €147 million project, partly financed through Italy’s PNRR recovery plan, and sit within a broader programme of technological and infrastructure upgrades being carried out by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) and its state-backed parent company the FS Group.
“The technological upgrade, including the installation of the ERTMS system, will ensure greater infrastructure reliability, resulting in improved service consistency and quality,” the infrastructure manager said. The company added that, beyond performance gains, the system would also mean lower management and maintenance costs than legacy signalling technology.
Rerouting high-speed traffic
To enable the switchover, both the Rome–Florence high-speed line and the conventional line will be unavailable during the works, leading to a major reduction in services. Some trains will be rerouted via the Tyrrhenian line, while others will face longer journey times.
From 15:00 on Sunday 12 April, trains will begin to return, although with fewer services and extended travel times where conventional lines are used as an alternative to the high-speed route. High-speed, Intercity and Regional services will all be affected. Sales systems are being updated, and only those connections subject to revised journey times will be available for purchase while timetable changes are being processed.
The Rome–Florence works form part of a wider national ERTMS deployment covering 2,800 km of network, backed by €2.5 billion in PNRR funding. That programme is due for completion by June 2026, with FS Italiane CEO Stefano Antonio Donnarumm recently stating that the company would equip more than 20,000 trains with onboard ETCS by 2030.