Gualtieri says Piazza Pia "symbol" of Jubilee Year.

A new underpass under construction near St Peter's is set to open on 20 December, in time for the Vatican's Jubilee Year 2025, the mayor of Rome confirmed on Thursday.

During the presentation of an annual update on progress in the capital, Roberto Gualtieri said works are "95 per cent complete" in Piazza Pia, one of the biggest Jubilee projects underway in the capital.

The scheme involves the pedestrianisation of Piazza Pia which will link Castel Sant'Angelo to Via della Conciliazione and St Peter's Square.

Traffic will be channelled underground to meet the existing Lungotevere in Sassia underpass which was built for the Jubilee in 2000.

"I like to think of this piazza as the symbol of the Jubilee," Gualtieri said, showing the audience a preview video of the new tunnel and the newly pedestrianised square.

A preview of Rome’s new underpass below Piazza Pia, near St Peter’s, due to open on 20 December in time for the Vatican’s Jubilee Year. pic.twitter.com/4SNlUWTpeu

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Construction works in Piazza Pia were interrupted temporarily by the discovery of the remains of an ancient Roman laundry and a garden linked to Emperor Caligula, however the ruins were removed by heritage authorities to allow the roadworks to continue.

The mayor said that other major Jubilee sites will reopen imminently, to the relief of the city's motorists who have faced significant traffic disruption for more than a year.

Gualtieri said that a restyled Piazza Risorgimento, near the Vatican, will be inaugurated on 23 December, while a new-look Piazza San Giovanni will be unveiled on 28 December.

Piazza dei Cinquecento, in front of the central Termini train station, will be partially reopened on 23 December and the Ponte dell'Industria bridge will reopen to traffic in January.

Describing it as "a massive process of transformation of the city", Gualtieri said: "Rome is getting there: it was a race against time, but Rome will be ready".

Photo credit: REPORT / Shutterstock.com.