Normally very crowded, Line A is estimated to transport nearly half a million people daily.
History
In 1959, approval was granted for the construction of a second metropolitan railway line in Rome, from the area of Osteria del Curato to Prati, passing through the city centre and intersecting with the existing line (inaugurated in 1955) at Termini Station.[3]
Work began in 1964 in the Tuscolana area and immediately ran into unexpected delays and difficulties, an example of which was the disruption caused to traffic in the south-east of Rome by the cut and cover method of digging. The work was suspended and resumed 5 years later, with tunnelling machines which, although helping to ease traffic problems, caused vibration damage to buildings.
Archaeological discoveries were frequent during the work, in particular in the area of Piazza della Repubblica, and required changes to the planning. The uncovered remains were put on show in protective glass display cases in Repubblica station. The tunnelling work and connected archaeological discoveries were portrayed in Federico Fellini's film Roma.
The line began service in 1980,[4] from Anagnina to Ottaviano and took the name of Line A, while the existing Termini-Laurentina line was called Line B. In the early 1990s, work began on an extension to Line A from Ottaviano to Battistini, which opened during 1999 and 2000.[2]
The first rolling stock used on Line A was the MA100 series trains running in 4-car formation, later increased to 6 cars due to increased passenger demand.
In the late 1990s, the MA200 series began operation on Line A and was the first Rome Metro train type to use three-phase asynchronous motors with electronic drive as its traction system. The MA200 series was however prone to technical problems and was originally intended only for Line B before being transferred to Line A.
In January 2005, the MA100 and MA200 series began to be replaced by new design, air-conditioned S/300 trains, built by the Spanish company CAF (Construcciones y Auxiliar de Ferrocarriles), identified as MA300 series by ATAC, operator of the Rome Metro. Because of this the MA100 and MA200 series have been transferred to the Rome-Lido railway.
The S/300 trains today make up the larger share of Line A's rolling stock. They also are some of the first cars to feature automated announcements.
Station announcements
S/300 train at Battistini station.Interior of an S/300 train. The chevrons on the LED displays indicate that the doors will open on the right side of the train at Flaminio–Piazza del Popolo.
In the S/300 cars, upon leaving a station, the next stop is announced as well as which side of the train the doors will open on. Upon entering the next station, the name of the station and which side the doors will open on is repeated. Once the train stops, several beeps go off as the doors open. A higher pitch chime sounds before the doors close. The cycle then repeats.
For example, this is how the announcements play for a train stopping at Barberini:
Upon leaving either Spagna or Repubblica, the announcement plays:
"Prossima fermata: Barberini–Fontana di Trevi. Uscita lato destro." (Translation: "Next stop: Barberini–Trevi Fountain. Exit right side.")
Then when the train enters Barberini, the announcement plays:
"Barberini–Fontana di Trevi. Uscita lato destro." (Translation: "Barberini–Trevi Fountain. Exit right side.")
On 17 October 2006, an accident caused the death of one person and injury to more than 100 others.
Future
For the occasion of the 2025 Jubilee, the Mayor of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, announced the extension of Line A to Torrevecchia, with an intermediate stop located on Pietro Bembo. Construction will begin in 2026, making use of an existing project for the Torrevecchia extension dating back to the 1970s, which will be restored and improved.[10]
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