How to Make Restricted Traffic Areas Fairer.

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September 16, 2008· Filed Under Italy 

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ZTL Zone Sign

Italy has many cities in which ZTLs exist.  These Zone Traffico Limitato areas are designed to prevent thousands of cars clogging up city centres and reduce pollution levels.

However, as is evidenced by my fast becoming infamous Speeding, and other traffic fines in Italy post and its accompanying comments, many tourists are being caught out by such zones.  Receiving a fine often a year or so after a visit to Italy is leaving a bad taste in many people’s mouths, not to mention their wallets.  Many are vowing not to return to Italy, which is a shame.

Here are a few ideas which could make these problematic zones a little fairer.

Clearer Signs

Italian road signs are confusing and cluttered at best, so something clearer would help.

Obviously having street signs in 30 or so different languages is not practical.  Therefore, a better way of indicating the existence of and entry into such zones needs to be found.

How about a flashing light indicating that motorists are about to enter such a zone?

I’m not sure which colour would be most effective, but at least it would be easier to see the lights meaning that drivers would have time to react and find an alternative route.  And lights would be much easier to recognize by an international audience than road signs written in Italian.

Give People a Way Out

Alternative routes, taking motorists away from limited traffic areas, would also be useful.  Such routes would need to be clearly indicated, perhaps with signs in the same colour as the flashing lights indicating entry into  a limited traffic area.

Parking Areas

Where possible, just after or before flashing lights indicating the start of a limited traffic zone, clear signs showing official parking areas could be displayed.  Again, this would stop traffic entering these zones, and give poor tourists more of a chance.

Keep Tourists Returning

Yes, the above would require some thought and organisation, but as a result, useful tourist income would not be lost, and people would cease to speak ill of Italy.  Additionally, the number of vehicles entering city centres would be reduced simply because drivers would understand that they are entering an area in which they cannot drive.

A few relatively simple measures would make everyone’s life a little easier and would demonstrate that Italy does give a damn about tourists.

Of course, if something is not done, then many will conclude that the primary purpose of the Italian ZTL is not to protect the environment, but purely to make money for Italian local authorities.  This is not really ethical.

Italian tourism authorities could work with municipal bodies in order to ensure that traffic levels are reduced whilst at the same time keeping Italy’s wonderful cities as tourist friendly and accessible as possible.

Although it may be true that only very few of the millions who visit Italy every year are affected by ZTL fines, an old marketing principle is that one happy person will not tell anyone, whereas one unhappy person will tell 100 others.

My original post has been seen over 7000 times.  Would Italy like to lose 700,000 paying tourists?  I think not.

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