Rome revives tram link between Termini and Trastevere amid funding cut controversy

The municipal council of Rome’s Municipio I approved a motion to revive a tram line that would connect the central Termini railway station with the Trastevere neighbourhood, using existing tracks in the Esquilino area. The proposal, originally approved in 2013 and championed by councilor Stefano Tozzi and the Brothers of Italy party, outlines a route through Via Napoleone II, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, Via Emanuele Filiberto, Viale Manzoni, Via Labicana and Ostiense, terminating in Trastevere with possible branches to the Trastevere railway station or Largo Argentina.

At the national level, the government has withdrawn the funds earmarked for the Via Nazionale section that would link Termini with the Vatican area (San Pietro). Environmental group Legambiente denounced the cut as “scandalous,” urging an immediate restoration of financing and stressing the project's role in Rome’s ecological transition and sustainable mobility agenda.