Move follows record high visitor numbers.

The Pompeii archaeological park is to cap its daily number of visitors at 20,000 in a bid to ease pressure on the ancient Roman site amid a surge of tourists in recent months.

The change takes effect from 15 November in parallel with the launch of a new ticketing system which will see tickets issued with the names of visitors, similar to the system in place at the Colosseum.

In a statement, the park's director Gabriel Zuchtriegel said that in addition to reducing human pressure on Pompeii's "unique and fragile" heritage, the move is designed to make the UNESCO site safer for people visiting, "for example in the event of an earthquake".

Zuchtriegel also said that efforts are being made to expand the visitor experience to other areas of Pompeii and to develop other ancient sites in the area, including Boscoreale, Torre Annunziata, Villa dei Misteri, Civita Giuliana and Stabia, with the aim of fostering a slower and more sustainble tourism model.

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The decision to cap visitor numbers comes after Pompeii registered a record-high 36,480 visitors on the first Sunday of October, as part of the monthly free entry scheme to Italy's state-run museums and archaeological sites.

This figure was double the number of people who visited Pompeii on the free-entry Sunday in September, according to Italian culture ministry data.

The 20,000 cap is likely to only curb tourist numbers on a handful of the busiest days of the year, including free-admission Sundays, a park spokesperson told Reuters.

More than four million people visited Pompeii last year, which works out at an average of around 11,200 visitors per day.

Pompeii was followed in October's free-Sunday ranking by the Colosseum (21,423 visitors), the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill (14,098), and the Pantheon (10,076).

Photo credit: wjarek / Shutterstock.com.