I arrived in Venice after a regional train took me from Lucca to Florence and one of Italy’s high-speed trains brought me from Florence to Venice. A couple of observations based on my limited experience with the Italian trains: First, as noted earlier, although the Italians tend to denigrate their rail system, it’s really…
SIENA, ITALY–Fifty-plus years ago, the gag definition of “mixed emotions” was watching your mother-in-law drive off a cliff in your brand new car. I’ve got a new one: “Mixed emotions is traveling from Tirano to Siena on three different trains and comparing that experience to Amtrak.” Each of those Italian trains departed and…
Italy plans to introduce high-speed rail service between Milan and Rome next year, reducing the 360-mile trip to a flat three hours … that’s an average speed of 120 mph, including whatever stops will be made en route. The Italian state railway, Trenitalia, says they expect to take 60 percent of all traffic between those…