The Trento–Venice railway is an Italian state-owned

railway line Rail terminology is a form of technical terminology. The difference between the American term ''railroad'' and the international term ''railway'' (used by the International Union of Railways and English-speaking countries outside the United Sta ...

connecting

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th ce ...

, in Trentino-Alto Adige, to

Mestre Mestre () is a borough of the ''comune'' (municipality) of Venice, on the mainland opposite the historical island city in the region of Veneto, Italy. Administratively, Mestre forms (together with the nearby Carpenedo) the ''Municipalità di ...

, a suburb of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The isla ...

, in the

Veneto it, Veneto (man) it, Veneta (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = ...

region. At Mestre, it connects to the main line from Verona. The line is managed by RFI, a company of the

Ferrovie dello Stato Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane S.p.A. ( "Italian Railways of the State"; previously only Ferrovie dello Stato, hence the abbreviation FS) is Italy's national state-owned railway holding company that manages transport, infrastructure, real estat ...

group. Passenger traffic is run by

Trenitalia Trenitalia is the primary train operator in Italy. A subsidiary of Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane, itself owned by the Italian government, the company was established in 2000 following a European Union directive on the deregulation of rail tra ...

, which also runs regional trains ordered by the

region; in the province of Trento, Trentino Trasporti fulfills this role (line 401).

History

Railway lines had been built from Trento, in what was then part of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, in 1859 southwards to

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

, and in 1867 northwards to

Bolzano Bolzano ( or ; german: Bozen, (formerly ); bar, Bozn; lld, Balsan or ) is the capital city of the province of South Tyrol in northern Italy. With a population of 108,245, Bolzano is also by far the largest city in South Tyrol and the third la ...

and the Brenner pass; today these form the Brenner Railway, the main railway connection between Italy and

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. On the Italian side a line was built from

Bassano del Grappa Bassano del Grappa ( vec, Basan or ''Bassan'', ) is a city and ''comune'', in the Vicenza province, in the region of Veneto, in northern Italy. It bounds the communes of Cassola, Marostica, Solagna, Pove del Grappa, Romano d'Ezzelino, Campolongo ...

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

in 1877, and an extension to the Italian-Austrian border at Primolano was studied. However, when the Veneto joined the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and f ...

, a new border was established at Tezze di Grigno, and hence the Austrians constructed a railway from Trento to Tezze in 1896, where it joined the Italian

Valsugana The Valsugana ( it, Valsugana, german: Suganertal) or Sugana Valley is one of the most important valleys in the autonomous province of Trentino in Northern Italy. Leading into the Alps' foothills, an important main north-south Roman road, the Vi ...

railway line. On the Italian side, the line from Mestre via Primolano to the border was built between 1906 and 1910, with the first part, to Bassano del Grappa, opening in 1908, and a second to Carpanè Valstagna the following year. Primolano now became an international border station, though only for a few years, as Trentino-Alto Adige became part of Italy after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The line was electrified in the 1980s from

Castelfranco Veneto Castelfranco Veneto ( vec, Casteło) is a town and '' comune'' of Veneto, northern Italy, in the province of Treviso, by rail from the town of Treviso. It is approximately inland from Venice. History The town originates from a castle built he ...

to Venezia Mestre, and in 2003 from Castelfranco Veneto to Bassano del Grappa. Other improvements in the 2000s included a so-called ' light surface metro' - a half-hourly local train service which also services a series of new suburban stations in the Trento region. For this service, new trains of the

Minuetto A minuet (; also spelled menuet) is a social dance of French origin for two people, usually in time. The English word was adapted from the Italian ''minuetto'' and the French ''menuet''. The term also describes the musical form that accompa ...

type were bought by Trentino Trasporti in order to replace the old

FS Class ALn 668 The ALn 668 (''Automotrice Leggera a nafta'', Light Diesel motor car) series is a family of diesel railcars built by Fiat Ferroviaria between the 1950s and the 1980s. The trains were built for the Italian public railway company Ferrovie dello ...

. A similar suburban service might be installed between Mestre and Castelfranco Veneto, but track improvements necessary for such a service are rendered difficult by the Padua-Venice section of the Verona–Venice high-speed railway.

Characteristics

The railway line is

single track Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

all the way from Trento to Maerne di Martellago, near Mestre, where it becomes double track for the last 10 km. All of it is standard gauge, and the line is electrified at 3000 V from Mestre to Bassano del Grappa, where the maximum speed is . Beyond Bassano, maximum speeds are much lower, with an average grade of 10 per thousand, increasing to 22 per thousand beyond Primolano; the steepest section is between Trento and Villazzano shich is also the slowest section with . The section between Trento and Primolano will be also electrified at 3000 V to improve the light metro services in Trentino. Trains take about 3.5 hours to cover the complete distance, for an average speed of below 50 km/h.

Services

Regional railway services are offered by

and Trentino Trasporti from Trento to Bassano del Grappa (hourly), and from Bassano del Grappa to Venice Santa Lucia (hourly, since 2013). Additionally, hourly 'light surface metro' (''metropolitana leggera di superficie'') services are offered in peak hours between

Borgo Valsugana Borgo Valsugana (''El Bórgo'' in local dialect) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about east of Trento. Borgo Valsugana borders the following municipalities: Telve, ...

East and

and between

East and

Gallery

Image:Trento stazione Minuetto TT Tn 07 20110214.jpg, An Alstom Minuetto DMU at Trento railway station Image:Pista ciclabile Calceranica.JPG, Railway at

Calceranica al lago Calceranica al Lago (''Calzerànega'' in local dialect) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in Trentino in the northern Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about east of Trento. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,209 an ...

by the shore of

Caldonazzo Lake Lago di Caldonazzo is a lake in Trentino, Italy. At an elevation of 449 m, its surface area is 5.38 km². It is located in the valley communities of Alta Valsugana e Bersntol. Water sports like the canoe, the sail, wind surfing and water ski ...

Image:MinuettoTTSPA Primolano.jpg, A train entering Primolano railway station Image:Transponder_SSC_protezione_PL.jpg, A SSC transponder on a wayside signal in

Solagna Solagna is a town in the province of Vicenza, Veneto, north-eastern Italy. It is east of SS47 state road. Sights include the church of Santa Giustina, with artworks by Brustolon and Giuseppe Ghedina; it also houses the alleged tomb of Ezzelino I ...

Image:Solagna staz ferr locomotiva 740.jpg, A restored

FS Class 740 The Ferrovie dello Stato (FS; Italian State Railways) Class 740 ( it, Gruppo 740) is a class of 2-8-0 'Consolidation' steam locomotives. Design and construction The FS Class 740 locomotives were designed as the simple expansion and superheated v ...

steam locomotive at Solagna Image:Aln668 Bassano.jpg, A

ALn 668 The ALn 668 (''Automotrice Leggera a nafta'', Light Diesel motor car) series is a family of diesel railcars built by Fiat Ferroviaria between the 1950s and the 1980s. The trains were built for the Italian public railway company Ferrovie dello S ...

railcar A railcar (not to be confused with a railway car) is a self-propelled railway vehicle designed to transport passengers. The term "railcar" is usually used in reference to a train consisting of a single coach (carriage, car), with a dri ...

railway station

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trento-Venice railway Railway lines in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol Railway lines in Veneto Transport in Trentino Railway lines opened in 1910