The trolleybus route 90 is a relatively new operation and is not actually wired for the entire length of its route. Between the Stazione Termini and Via Nomentana, the Solaris-Ganz Trollino vehicles are able to operate at regular traffic speeds on battery power. Once the wires are reached, a 30 second stop is made where the driver raises the poles at the touch of a button, and continues on the wire until the terminus at Largo Labia in the North of the city.
The network of tram routes while mentioned is small, they do however cover a large number of communities in the middle ring of Rome, with the longest route 19 making a Cook's tour from Piazza Gerani in the South-east, North then West across the River Tevere then South, terminating just before the Vatican City. The other tram routes operating presently are 2, 3, 5, 8 & 14.
The large fleet of Iveco, Breda, Menarinibus and now Mercedez-Benz Citaro's fill in the gaps in between, operating in Rome's extremely congested inner city streets and in the in-between areas not served by the Metro, Urban and Tram routes.
Rome being a generally dirty city in comparison with many other European cities, is reflected in the cleanliness of the transport vehicles, in particular the Metropolitana which is completely unphotogenic due to the chronically out of control graffiti which covers these vehicles. The Metropolitana is also crawling with pick-pockets and should be used with the greatest of caution and personal awareness. The Urban lines are also filthy and operate more like an old style US Inter-urban tram operation. The state of the underground trains is similar to the state of the New York Subway in its darkest days of the late 1970's. With so may terrific sights to see in the city, it should be ashamed of the way its vehicles are presented to locals and visitors alike.
In addition, the national railway TrenItalia (formerly
known as Ferrovie dello Stato) operates a network of commuter services in the suburbs and towns within the region of
Lazio - approximately 100klms out of Central Rome. The types and classes of EMU's and Push-Pull locomotive sets used
are similar to those used in services surrounding other large Italian cities.
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