More than 12 million vehicles will be on Italy's roads during the August bank holiday, the motorway company ANAS Road Mobility Observatory said ahead of the upcoming long weekend following Ferragosto on Friday.
Traffic is expected to continue to increase due to the travel of travelers who have remained in the major cities and are taking a few days off to celebrate August 15th in closer towns.
There will be no shortage of last vacationers traveling to more distant destinations, while the first returns home are expected starting Saturday the 16th and Sunday the 17th.
Viabilità Italia has announced a red warning starting tomorrow afternoon, Thursday, August 14th, and for Friday, August 15th.
Travel from large urban centers throughout Italy to holiday resorts, seaside resorts in the south and mountain resorts in the north, and towards the national borders, will increase significantly.
Traffic will decrease, however, on Saturday, August 16th: after the black warnings of recent weeks, no long-distance travel is expected, but rather short trips for day trips.
Sunday, August 17th, a red warning day, will see heavy traffic toward large urban centers.
For heavy vehicles, however, the stop will be in effect on Friday, August 15th, from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm, Saturday, August 16th from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm, and Sunday, August 17th from 7:00 am to 10:00 pm.
The routes affected by this weekend's exodus will be southbound, the main routes towards holiday resorts, particularly along the Adriatic, Tyrrhenian, and Ionian coasts, and along the border crossings towards France, Slovenia, and Croatia.
In view of the significant increase in traffic, ANAS has increased the commitment of its personnel on the territory and has reduced the presence of construction sites.
Until September 8th, 1,392 will be closed or suspended, approximately 83% of those active (1,672).
"Never drive with your cell phone" is the appeal from ANAS CEO Claudio Andrea Gemme, who urges motorists to drive carefully and respect speed limits.
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