Autostrade of Italy

"Autostrada" redirects here. For other uses, see Autostrada (disambiguation).
For the company previously known as Autostrade, see Mundys.

Map of the autostrade of Italy

The autostrade (Italian: [ˌautoˈstraːde]; sg. autostrada [ˌautoˈstraːda]) are roads forming the Italian national system of motorways. The total length of the system is about 7,016 kilometres (4,360 mi), as of 30 July 2022.[1] There are also 13 motorway spur routes, which extend for 355 kilometres (221 mi).[2]

Most of the Italian motorways have two lanes per carriageway, but 1,870.2 kilometres (1,162.1 mi) of the Italian motorway network have three lanes per carriageway, 129 kilometres (80 mi) have four lanes per carriageway, and only 1.8 kilometres (1.1 mi) have five lanes per carriageway.[3] The density is of 22.4 kilometres (13.9 mi) of motorway for every 1,000 square kilometres (390 sq mi) of Italian territory.[4]

Italy was the first country in the world to build motorways reserved for fast traffic and motor vehicles only.[5][6] The Autostrada dei Laghi ("Lakes Motorway"), the first built in the world, connecting Milan to Lake Como and Lake Maggiore, and now forms the A8 and A9 motorways, was devised by Piero Puricelli and inaugurated in 1924.[6]

In Northern and Central Italy and in the Southern regions of Campania and Apulia, the Autostrade mainly consist of tollways managed by Autostrade per l'Italia, a holding company controlled by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. [7][8] Other operators include ASTM, ATP, and Autostrade Lombarde in the north-west; Autostrada del Brennero, A4 Holding, Concessioni Autostradali Venete [it], and Autovie Venete [it] in the north-east; Strada dei Parchi [it], SALT, SAT, and Autocisa in the center; and CAS in Sicily.

On Italian motorways, the toll applies to almost all motorways not managed by Anas. There are two types of toll systems used on the Autostrade: the "closed motorway system" (toll based on the kilometres travelled) or the "open motorway system" (flat-rate toll).[9] Since a motorway could managed by numerous operators, the toll is only requested when exiting the motorway and not when the motorway operator changes. This system was made possible following Article 14 of Law 531 of 12 August 1982.[10]

  1. ^ "Aggiornamenti sull'evoluzione del regolamento europeo (AFIR) per la modifica della direttiva europea in materia di combustibili alternativi (DAFI)" [Updates on the evolution of the European regulation (AFIR) for the amendment of the European directive on alternative fuels (DAFI)] (PDF) (in Italian). AISCAT. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  2. ^ "Le autostrade" (in Italian). 19 September 2018. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  3. ^ "L'EVOLUZIONE DEL PEDAGGIO E DEI MECCANISMI DI ESAZIONE" (PDF) (in Italian). Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2018.
  4. ^ "Le strade dell'informazione" (in Italian). Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference independent was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference motorwebmuseum was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ "Benetton Family to Control Italian Toll Road Operator". The New York Times. 22 February 2003. Archived from the original on 19 October 2022.
  8. ^ "Infrastructure company controlled by the Benetton famil". 18 October 2016. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference autostrade.it was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference edizionieuropee was invoked but never defined (see the help page).