How old is your train?

“The study of the average age of trains in Italy is essential to understand the situation that commuters face every day, and to know where to intervene to make the service more competitive, to have more modern and comfortable trains, that are fast, so that they satisfy the new and growing demand for mobility in urban areas.”

This is according to the 2015 Pendolaria Report by the Italian environmental protection association, Legambiente, who analysed the average age of rolling stock, region by region.

There are approximately 3300 trains in service, in Italy, and their average age is 18.6 years; this figure varies considerably from region to region.

In the national table, our region occupies 5th place, with an average age of 21.4 years. Of the 448 trains in circulation in Lombardy, 77.2% are more than 20 years old.

The top region in terms of the age of its trains, is the Abruzzi, with an average of 28.3 years, and 84.7% of trains that are more than 20 years old.

In 21st place in the table, with the newest trains, is the autonomous Province of Bolzano, where the average age is 12.3 years, and none of the 59 trains in circulation is more than 20 years old.

“In Lombardy, the average age of the trains is high, about 22 years,” the 2015 Pendolaria Report explains. “If we take into consideration general renovation work, the average age falls to 7.5 years, but this isn’t sufficient, given the large number of commuters in this region, as wear and tear on the trains inevitably affects the quality of the service.”

Some lines are particularly affected, such as the Milan-Lecco line, where the trains are definitely obsolete, with a peak of 45 years in the case of the train PR 1969.

And the situation is no better on the Milan-Sondrio-Tirano line, where the DP (double-decker) and MD (medium-distance) trains have been in circulation since 1985, for 30 years, no less, stacking up thousands and thousands of kilometres.

And so, commuters have to put up with carriages and wagons that are no longer up with the times, that often do not have air-conditioning, and suffer frequent breakages and faults.

“The investments necessary to have a European-level service must include the purchase of about 1300 trains,” Legambiente conclude, “and set objectives that are in the interest of the public and of the commuters. We need to renew the rolling stock in circulation, replacing the trains that are more than 20 years old, and increasing the service on the more popular routes in the metropolitan areas. To achieve these results, it is essential to have a national organisation that can evenly target policies concerning mobility and transport, but the involvement of the regions is equally necessary.”