ITALY: Construction started on February 16 on the initial 1·3 km Cascina Gobba – Quartiere Adriano section of Milano’s tangential tramway linking districts to the north of the city.
The Metrotranvia Interquartiere Nord project involves extensions at both ends of an existing tramway in the north of the city which is used by route 7. This will create a 14 km northeast-northwest tangential light rail corridor between Cascina Gobba on metro Line 2 and Certosa main line station. Tram route 7 currently runs between Via Anassagora and Via Fulvio Testi before turning south towards the city centre.
The Cascina Gobba – Quartiere Adriano section would serve three new stops and works include creating a cycle path.
According to the municipality of Milano, the construction of a further 1·7 km section is to start imminently, with preparatory works already underway. This second segment would connect Via Fulvio Testi with the Niguarda hospital complex, serving three stops.
The city council also expects to start work before the summer on a further 1·9 km section. This would run between the Piazza Bausan terminus of tram route 2 and Villapizzone main line station, passing Bovisa station on the way.
The total cost of the construction of the three sections so far approved is €86·3m. This is being financed from Italy’s share for the EU Recovery & Resilience Fund. The civil works are expected to be completed by June 2026.
The sections between the Niguarda hospital and Piazza Bausan and between Villapizzone and Certosa main line stations are in the planning phase.
To serve the line, 14 bidirectional trams are to be acquired by operator ATM. These are also to be financed from the Recovery & Resilience Fund.
‘In our city within two and a half years, several kilometres of public transport will be added to provide citizens and towns with efficient and environmentally friendly mobility’, said Arianna Censi, City Councillor for Mobility ‘The Metrotranvia Interquartiere Nord is a long-awaited project that will allow the neighbourhoods to the northeast to be connected to those in the northwest, without necessarily passing through the centre.’
