Hydrogen and electric buses in popularity contest with motorcycles in Rome

Will sustainable public transport finally prove more attractive to the city’s commuters?

Stefano Brinchi, the CEO of Roma Servizi per la Mobilita (Rsm), the Italian capital’s municipal company in charge of mobility management, promised in a recent interview for Eurocities that he has a ‘relaunch plan’ for the local public transport system. His aim is to bring more and newer electric and hydrogen buses, more trams and more kilometres of cycling paths.

The main objective of the Administration is to provide a public transport network that represents a real and efficient alternative to private transport. The news comes in the context of a report, also published by Rsm, which concluded that despite growth in sustainable infrastructure – private motorized vehicles have remained the preferred mobility mode of Romans.

Motorbikes and scooters have become an iconic symbol of the city

Can one think of Italy and Rome and not think of small motorbikes darting around its street in a carefree manner? Much of this imagery has been immortalized in moves, such as La Dolce Vita.

It turns out that this is much more than a cultural stereotype, as Rsm’s report showed that motorcycles with engines larger than 50cc are the fastest-growing mobility mode in the Italian capital, totalling 387,000.

Cars have also experienced growth of 1% compared to 2019, despite ownership in that category declining between 2013 and 2016. The result is that Rome now has 629 cars for every 1000 inhabitants, making it the most motorized of the country’s large metropolises. The silver lining is that there is a surge in the acquisition of electric cars.

City bus usage experienced a sharp decline of nearly 60% in 2020. This, however, can likely be explained by the Covid pandemic and the resulting restrictions and lockdowns that came in its wake.

On the bright side, there are 11,000 shared scooters, making them the most popular shared mobility vehicle in the city. In fact, 40% of all shared scooters in Italy are located in Rome.

Likewise, the cycling network in the city has grown by almost a quarter in the past 4 years to reach a total length of 317 kilometres. The report, however, does not indicate statistics on its usage, which would be the right indicator of its efficiency and popularity.