Naples, traffic jams and taxis costing thousands of pounds: the Consumers' Movement issues a formal warning to Palazzo San Giacomo.

A formal formal warning addressed to city and regional government leaders denouncing the structural collapse of Neapolitan urban mobility.

The Consumer Movement – ​​Naples Section, through its representative Osvaldo Ciriello, has submitted an urgent request to Prefect Michele Di Bari, President of the Campania Region Roberto Fico, Regional Councillor for Transport Mario Casillo, Mayor Gaetano Manfredi, and City Councillors Edoardo Cosenza (Transport) and Antonio De Iesu (Municipal Police and Legality).

The document highlights how the city's traffic gridlock no longer represents a temporary inconvenience, but a genuine violation of citizens' fundamental rights enshrined in Article 2 of the Consumer Code (Legislative Decree 206/2005), particularly with regard to the protection of health, safety, and the quality of essential public services.

Taxis charged for waiting times and buses blocked

Among the most serious critical issues highlighted by the association are the direct economic impact on users. The traffic ban causes a disproportionate increase in taxi service costs: metered fares, based on hourly increments during periods of vehicle standstill, force residents and tourists to pay exorbitant prices to remain stuck in traffic jams.

Added to this is the paralysis of public transport by road. Buses and trolleybuses remain hampered by illegal parking along bus lanes, which lack safety barriers or automatic detection systems, making it impossible to comply with the timetables set out in the Service Charters.

Simultaneous construction sites and unguarded limited traffic zones

The Consumer Movement also points to the lack of coordination in the management of road construction sites and major events. The simultaneous opening of multiple excavation sites without effective alternative routes or timely communication ends up turning the city's strategic hubs into impassable bottlenecks.

The management of Limited Traffic Zones is also under scrutiny: the lack of electronic surveillance and rigorous fines at access points undermines the effectiveness of the ZTLs, undermining environmental protection and decongestion in the historic center.

The requests to the institutions and the 15-day ultimatum
To stop what is being defined as an unsustainable emergency, the association has formulated specific requests:

To the City of Naples: immediate approval of a Special Traffic Plan; full operation and electronic monitoring of all restricted traffic zones; monitoring of preferential lanes with approved cameras to ensure speed and usability of buses and taxis/NCCs (pursuant to Law 21/1992); mandatory advance notification of construction sites and diversions.

At the Naples Prefecture: Activation of inter-force coordination to monitor road safety at key traffic points.

To the Campania Region: promote a joint working group to promote tariff integration and the use of park-and-ride parking.

The association has requested an urgent meeting of a technical committee with consumer representatives at the City of Naples. If no concrete response is received within 15 days, the Consumer Movement will consider initiating legal and administrative action to protect collective interests, including reporting to the supervisory authorities.