Rome's Tridente area gets restyling for festive season

Piazza di Spagna is to become fully pedestrianised by Christmas, according to a report in Rome's daily newspaper Il Messaggero.

The project will involve numerous traffic diversions in the area around the Spanish Steps, although the new viability plan is still being fine-tuned.

One of the main changes is that the taxis will not be allowed to drive across the Piazza di Spagna any longer although the ranks in nearby Piazza Mignanelli and Via di S. Sebastianello will remain. What still needs to be ironed out is how taxis can ferry customers to and from the area's upmarket hotels.

It is also likely that the horse-drawn carriages or botticelle – which currently use Piazza di Spagna as an informal parking area – will be diverted elsewhere.

The measure is one of the many aspects of the restyling programme in the area of Rome known as the Tridente.

Located in the heart of the historic centre, the trident-shaped area is centred around Via del Corso and spans Piazza del Popolo, Piazza di Spagna and the river Tiber.

The Tridente restyling project was launched last year by former mayor Gianni Alemanno but has gained renewed momentum under his eco-friendly successor Ignazio Marino. The Piazza di Spagna pedestrianisation plan was reportedly put back in the spotlight thanks to lobbying by various historic centre resident associations.

Some of the works in the Tridente area have already finished been or are coming to an end, such as the re-paving of Via di Ripetta, Via della Borgognona and Via della Croce up to Piazza del Popolo.