Italian transit agencies increase inspections to combat fare evasion

Public transportation companies in Italy are intensifying inspections to combat fare evasion and service irregularities.

In Tuscany, Autolinee Toscane has launched an initiative involving executives and controllers to monitor bus operations. CEO Franco Middei participated in the inspections to gather data on ticket compliance and address recurring issues such as delays and skipped routes. The company plans to recruit 75 internal inspectors by December to improve service reliability ahead of the school year.

In Verona, Atv conducted extensive checks between August 25 and September 8, inspecting 190 vehicles and identifying over 5,400 passengers. The operation resulted in 172 violations for lack of valid tickets and three reports to judicial authorities for refusing to provide identification. According to Commander Luigi Altamura, the increased presence of personnel and surveillance helped reduce the evasion rate to 3%, down from 10% during previous surprise checks.