Railway disruptions in Calabria

In early September 2026, rail services in Calabria experienced disruptions due to a national railway strike organized by the Sgb and Cub unions. The labor dispute, centered on demands for a contract renewal, primarily affected regional and Intercity services, including routes connecting Reggio Calabria with Catanzaro Lido, Lamezia Terme, Paola, and Cosenza, as well as connections to Puglia.

Later in the month, on September 25, a technical failure caused a major paralysis of rail traffic on the Paola-Reggio Calabria line. A Frecciarossa high-speed train became entangled with overhead electrical contact lines between Falerna and Nocera Terinese. The incident tore down cables and damaged supporting poles, halting circulation on the Tyrrhenian line, a critical axis connecting Central-Northern Italy to Calabria and Sicily.

Technical teams from Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) worked to secure the area and repair the infrastructure. The disruption led to significant delays of up to four hours for High Speed, Intercity, and Regional services, with some trains being canceled or terminated early at stations such as Paola, Lamezia Terme Centrale, and Campora. To mitigate the impact, Trenitalia implemented replacement bus services between Paola and Lamezia Terme. Preliminary investigations suggest that “adverse weather conditions may have contributed to the structural failure of the support poles.” While service began to resume gradually following technical interventions, significant delays persisted for several hours as authorities worked to clear the backlog of stranded trains.