Turin bets on the tram network and Bus Rapid Transit to relaunch transport

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Turin invests over one billion euros in the development of a more sustainable local public transport model. While the council led by mayor Lo Russo assures: “No increase in the price of tickets.” A total of 700 million euros will be used for the extension of the underground line currently in operation, with another 4 stations, alongside the creation of 2 tram lines and 30 kilometers more of tracks. To this will be added a total of 437 new ecological buses and 70 new trams for another 380 million investment over the next five years.

The mayor Stefano Lo Russo presented the numbers of Turin’s public transport for the next few years, together with the councilor for transport Chiara Foglietta and the managing director of GTT, Serena Lancione. The goal is to create a more widespread, reliable and comfortable service by 2027, to support the city’s mobility model in a more sustainable way. With maximum waiting times of 8 minutes.

To achieve this goal and make public transport competitive and an alternative to private mobility, the administration is betting on extending line 1 of the subway up to Cascine Vica, on upgrading the tram system with new routes, on introducing the BRT system (Bus Rapid Transit) and on the arrival of new vehicles with strong growth in electric vehicles.

Another fundamental game for public transport is that of the second subway line, a fundamental work for the future of the city and entirely financed by the state. The “extended priority network” system will be built around the two underground lines and the tramway network, as it will be strengthened, a sort of backbone served by high-capacity and high-frequency vehicles, which will allow faster connections, towards the different connecting lines will converge.

Traffic light priority for public transport will contribute to reducing waiting times, for which preferential lanes will be reserved along some routes. Turin will also be one of the first cities in Italy to have a “Bus Rapid Transit” line, electric buses with recharging at the terminus which, with characteristics similar to the tram service, will offer a high passenger transport capacity and greater speed in travel.