Naples is preparing to relive the nostalgic thrills of a dive into the past with a modern choice that looks to the future: the return of the historic route of tram line 1.
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Starting from Monday 7 April 2025, work will begin on the “enhancement and restoration of the tram line” along a route that will connect via Acton, Galleria Vittoria, piazza Vittoria and piazza Sannazaro, crossing the Riviera di Chiaia and via Giordano Bruno.
An ambitious project that doesn't stop here
Also under construction are the interchange hub with the Line 2 station in San Giovanni a Teduccio and the extension of the tram to Mergellina, with a node integrated into the funicular.
This will be the birth of the “sea tram”, a 10-kilometer route that will embrace the entire Neapolitan coastline, as announced on the Municipality's website.
On the same day, the construction site will also start to extend the tram line on via Stadera to the Anm depot on via Nazionale delle Puglie. Both interventions, co-financed with Pnrr funds, have a deadline set for June 2026.
“This expansion responds to the need to enhance sustainable collective transport on high-demand routes,” reads the note from the Municipality, which recalls the objectives of the Pums (Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan).
Not only that: the administration led by Mayor Gaetano Manfredi has also allocated Pnrr resources to the purchase of 11 new trams, currently in production, underlining the historical and cultural value of a vehicle that has been circulating in Naples since 1876.
The project aims at a modern and integrated tram system, with interoperability between line 1, line 6 of the subway and the Mergellina funicular. Among the technical innovations, the installation of an anti-vibration mat under the sleepers to reduce noise pollution, replacing obsolete materials that cause disturbances, especially in via Giordano Bruno. "An intervention that respects the state of the places prior to the subway works", the Municipality assures.
The councilor for Infrastructure and Mobility, Edoardo Cosenza, commented on the project: “The strengthening of the tram system is part of the Pums scenarios updated to January 2025. The 'sea tram' is a crucial goal for sustainable mobility, complementary to the subways, dedicated to citizens and tourists”.
And he adds a detail that winks at tradition: “The tram will be blue, a tribute to the color of Naples.”
Satisfaction also from Nino Simeone, president of the Mobility and Infrastructure Commission: "The 'sea tram' is a fundamental piece. The connection between Piazza Municipio and the Port, with direct access to the port area, will be operational in three or four months: the tracks are already there, it is only necessary to recover them and complete the road redevelopment".
After this first phase, the work will move towards Piazza Sannazaro, with more complex interventions in Via Giordano Bruno. “An ambitious project that will complete a historic line, giving Naples a piece of its past with an eye to the future,” concludes Simeone.
Naples thus reclaims a symbol of its identity, combining tradition and innovation for increasingly green and accessible mobility.
Article published on 5 April 2025 - 11:22
The return of the tram is a very nice thing, but I hope that the works do not create too many inconveniences for those who use public transport. Mobility is important for everyone and tourists must also be able to move well.