Progressive changes for road conditions and public transport between the Prati and Borgo districts in view of the construction site that will open for the redevelopment and pedestrianization of Piazza Pia, between Castel Sant'Angelo and Via della Conciliazione.

From 7 a.m. Tuesday, August 22, the routes of bus lines 23, 40, 62, 280, 982, n3d and n3s will be changed in the St. Peter's area and in conjunction with a new change in traffic circulation patterns.

•  Line 40 from the Borgo Sant'Angelo terminus will continue to Via della Traspontina, bus line 62 will move its terminus from Via della Traspontina to San Pietro station.
• Bus line 23 from piazzale Clodio, line 280 from piazza Mancini, line 982 in the direction of viale dei Quattro Venti and line n3s from piazzale Ostiense will travel via di Porta Castello, via della Traspontina and via San Pio X.
•  The 23 bus line arriving from largo Murialdo, the 40 from Termini, the 982 in the direction of viale XVII Olimpiade and the n3d from piazzale Ostiense will deviate to Lungoteere Altoviti and Tor di Nona, Ponte Umberto I, piazza dei Tribunali, via Triboniano, piazza Adriana. The 23 and n3d will continue to via Crescenzio, the 40 will stop at Borgo Sant'Angelo.
• Bus line 40, departing from Borgo Sant'Angelo, will continue to via della Traspontina, via San Pio X and Lungotevere in Sassia.
• Bus line 62 arriving from Tiburtina station, once it reaches Ponte Vittorio Emanuele will continue along Lungotevere in Sassia, Piazza della Rovere, Galleria Pasa, via di Porta Cavalleggeri, via del Crocifisso, via Innocenzo III until San Pietro station, the new terminus. Starting from here it will travel via delle Fornaci, largo Porta Cavalleggeri, galleria Pasa, piazza della Rovere and Ponte Pasa.

 

Bus stops 72072 at Piazza Pia, 72371 and 82180 at Via della Traspontina, and 71961 at Via Sforza Pallavicini will be deactivated. Meanwhile in the Prati area, changes to traffic patterns have been triggered.

 

• On the streets between Viale Giulio Cesare and Via Cola di Rienzo, the traffic direction has changed on Via Duilio, Via Attilio Regolo and Via Fabio Massimo as of August 10.
• On the streets between Via Cola di Rienzo and Via Crescenzio, since August 11 reversed the direction of travel on Via Terenzio and Via Virgilio.
• Soon, there will also be a change of direction on Via Varro and Via Propertius.
   

CONSTRUCTION SITE TIMING AND MODALITIES

Work is scheduled to start by this August and will be completed by December 2024. Financed  with 70 million euros from the Jubilee, they will be carried out by ANAS through a agreement with Roma Capitale. Also presenting the project on July 26, which was described by Mayor Roberto Gualtieri as the "lead" construction site for the Holy Year, were Undersecretary to the Presidency of the Council Alfredo Mantovano, Monsignor Rino Fisichella, Pope Francis' delegate for the organization of Jubilee 2025, Anas CEO Aldo Isi and Capitoline councillors for Public Works Ornella Segnalini and Mobility Eugenio Patanè.
The creation of this new large pedestrian square -  it was explained at the presentation - will in fact unite the area of Castel San'Angelo with Via della Conciliazione and thus with St. Peter's Basilica, guaranteeing pedestrians safe enjoyment of the area and fluidity of vehicular traffic thanks to the creation of the underpass that will connect with that of Lungotevere in Sassia, which already exists and was recently upgraded by the CSIMU Department of the Capitoline Department of Public Works.

"The current road system in Piazza Pia, where 3,000 vehicles an hour pass through, will be buried in the direction of the existing underpass, built for Jubilee 2000. The project will complete the external arrangements of the areas included in and facing Piazza Pia, through an intervention on the paving of the entire area, the construction of a new public lighting system, the redevelopment of the green system and the strengthening of accessibility systems for people with reduced mobility".

The project, in detail, concerns the extension of the existing underpass by about 130 meters and will be carried out using the "cut&cover" methodology that allows for simultaneous surface and interior work. The roadbed will maintain the same geometric characteristics asthe existing one ; namely, a roadway with an overall width of 9.5 meters. Among the main interventions in the area affected by the work will be the relocation of two major sewer collectors.

"The intervention," Mayor Roberto Gualtieri explained last July 26, "reunites two places that had historically been on axis, Castel Sant'Angelo and St. Peter's, a rift already opened with the first underpass. Via della Conciliazione is so named because it referred to conciliation with the Church. We want to move from conciliation to embracing the city and the Vatican with a work that is also challenging from an engineering point of view. This is not just an underpass, but it is the return to the city of beautiful and very important spaces, in connection to the Tiber and the relationship between the two monuments. It is not just a  tunnel but a pedestrianization, a major urban redevelopment. On August 20-21 excavation will begin and we will work h24, 3 shifts of eight hours, non-stop"
For Monsignor Rino Fisichella, "Via della Conciliazione pedestrianized will be a unique thing, because having a perspective from Castel Sant'Angelo to St. Peter's will be a great, decisive and architecturally very significant improvement;As for the pilgrims - he added in the July 26 presentation, - are studying ways in which there will be a reserved sector to encourage prayer and singing and also the recognition of pilgrims going to the Holy Door.

How the road system changes: Vittorio Emanuele Bridge to two-way traffic

The alternative road system designed to make way for the construction site- as outlined in the July 26 presentation- includes changes in traffic directions for various streets, whichwill also affect bus routes, as well as several traffic light adjustments and interventions onsome parking spaces and cab stands. The changes will take place in two main phases. In particular, in the first ten days of August to leave room for the work on the construction site in the area, one-way traffic was planned for the road axes that connect Piazza Adriana to Viale delle Milizie: that of Via Virgilio-via Duilio-via Damiata in the northern direction while in the opposite direction, to the south, Via Fabio Massimo-via Terenzio.
"The physical blockage of the traffic that flows through Piazza Pia (construction area) going in the direction of the current underpass, will result in the parallel change of direction in the route that from Corso Vittorio Emanuele II now reaches the Prati district, passing through Via Traspontina and Via di Porta Castello. Therefore, these two streets, will run in the opposite direction to the current one, and Ponte Vittorio Emanuele will also become ‘two-way’ as in the English-style. The entrance to Borgo Pio and the Prati district will instead be via Lungotevere Tor di Nona and Ponte Umberto I, in front of the Palazzaccio.

A facility to study the impact of construction sites.

"We ask all Romans" Mayor Roberto Gualtieri said last July 26, "to be patient. The Rome mobility services agency has studied traffic optimization with scientific tools, and we have set up an ‘ad hoc’ structure to study the impact of construction sites on traffic. In
connecting construction sites, we have tried to avoid certain quadrants. For example, the Industry Bridge is closed, but if we had not done that, we would have closed it permanently in 2026. There are interventions that are ameliorative and others that are indispensable, and all of them will improve the quality of life in the city".