TERNI - SULMONA LINE
It is one of the most impressive railways in Central Italy; this line runs 164 km from Terni to Sulmona, connecting southern Umbria with Rieti and L’Aquila. It climbs up to 990 meters at Sella di Corno station, covering a transversal route. At the planning stage, this line would have been part of a longer itinerary, connecting Florence with Umbria, Abruzzi and Naples, bypassing Rome (then part of Papal States). After the Capture of Rome in 1870, there was no more need to bypass the city, and so the line change its role as a east-west connection, in order to connect Rome with Adriatic coast.
HISTORY
Construction works began in 1871 at Pescara station (which then served a hamlet of Chieti, later to become the most populous city of the Region); in 1873 the track reached Popoli and two years later the railway arrived at Sulmona. This portion of the line runs in the Pescara river valley, thus it was easy to build. Sulmona station was built at about 3 km away from the city centre, further north than the present station (inaugurated in 1888 together with the direct line from Rome). In February 1875 the Sulmona-Molina section opened, with track climbing with a steep gradient within the San Venanzio Valley, dug by the river Aterno. Three months later the railway eventually reached L’Aquila (then called Aquila degli Abruzzi), the capital city of the region. From this point, two hypothetical routes were planned: one serving Pizzoli and Borbona (10 km north of L’Aquila) and the other one climbing up to Sella di Corno pass. The second option was chosen as it enabled to save about 10 km. In 1882 was opened the section to Rocca di Corno; the remaining route to Terni (79 km) was built in only 13 months and on 28th October 1883 the whole route was completed and opened. At the beginning steam trains were run, with through services Terni-Pescara taking about 7/11 hours to cover 232 km, integrated by local services Terni-Rieti (2 hours) and L’Aquila-Pescara (4 hours). Despite the high travel times, the line got a mild success, as there were no other means to reach the inner parts of Apennines, especially from the coasts. However the line did never become a fast route from Rome to Pescara, especially after 1888, when the new line Roma-Sulmona was inaugurated, which caused the line to be split into two parts (Terni-Sulmona and Pescara-Sulmona, the latter fully integrated into the new railway from Rome). The 1915 earthquake badly damaged the line between L’Aquila and Sulmona, which was quickly restored. During 1930s new services and rolling stock were introduced; the brand new diesel railcars Aln 56 drastically cut travel times, passing from about 20 km/h to 50 km/h (Sulmona-L’Aquila steam services took about 4 hours, while diesel services about 90 minutes). Steam machines were relegated to goods services and occasional passengers services. Nevertheless with the Second World War outbreak, fuel had to be saved for armies and all diesel services were converted to steam services. The war almost destroyed the line which remained opened only between Rieti and Antrodoco (along its route, the Gustav line was traced, and so retreating German troops removed tracks and destroyed almost all stations). After the war, repairing works began quickly, and service along the whole line was restored in 1946. Diesel railcars took over all passenger services, and new through trains between Rome and L’Aquila began running via Terni. During 1960s the railway was to be closed for the low traffic, but it was maintained due to its transversal route which served Central Apennines. In 1987 the through service L’Aquila-Roma Termini was withdrawn and during 1990s a modernization plan was undertaken: introduction of new rolling stock (Aln 668.3300 diesel railcars) and of the Centralized Traffic Control (CTC) system (located at L’Aquila station). At the same time, the goods service almost disappeared from the line (keeping run only near Terni station). Outstanding news for the line took place in 2008: services were split into Terni-L’Aquila (whose services are now managed by Ferrovia Centrale Umbra FCU, which also manages two local lines in Umbria) and L’Aquila-Sulmona, being managed by Trenitalia. Some FCU trains connect L’Aquila to Perugia without changing train at Terni station, and a new morning service between Rieti and Rome was reintroduced. Also rolling stock is different according to the company: Aln 776 for FCU and Aln 668 for Trenitalia. Early morning on 6th April 2009, a powerful earthquake struck L’Aquila, causing heavy damages to the city and surrounding villages; the warehouse in L’Aquila station collapsed and the CTC building was damaged beyond repair. Goods sidings were used to recover night carriages for hosting homeless. All stations between L’Aquila and Beffi were slightly damaged. The line was restored during summer 2009 with a new CTC building; new services were introduced in December 2009 to cope with the increased students commuting to and from L’Aquila.
ROUTE
From Terni railway station, the line leave on the right the Roma Ancona mainline, crossing the western districts of Terni, up to the Terni Cospea station (from where a branch serves the nearby industrial area). From this point the track starts climbing to reach Marmore station (near the famous cascade). From Marmore the line passes through the Velino river plateau, serving Labro-Moggio, Greccio, Contigliano and Poggio Fidoni stations, entering in the town of Rieti. After this important station (which was a quite great goods junction), the line follows the river Velino, with stations at Cittaducale, Cotilia (closed to passenger services), sorgenti del Peschiera, Castel S.Angelo Canetra, Antrodoco-Borgo Velino and Antrodoco Centro. Leaving Antrodoco, the track start climbing on a steep gradient, with sharp curves enabling the line to arrive up 990 meters above the sea level at Sella di Corno station, and then descending towards L’Aquila. The line keeps descending, passing through the narrow Aterno river valley, surrounded by wild woods and small villages. The line from train join the tracks from Pescara before entering in Sulmona station, which offer a connection with Roma Pescara mainline services and (until December 2011) with the spectacular line to Carpinone.
SERVICES
Since December 2008, passenger services has been split into two parts: Terni-L’Aquila trains managed by FCU (some of them extended to Perugia), while L’Aquila-Sulmona trains keep being managed by Trenitalia. New FCU services offer faster service and an increased headway of 90 minutes between Terni and L’Aquila; a disappointing feature of the new pattern is the lack of coordinated connections at L’Aquila station, with trains from Terni arriving few minutes after trains to Sulmona have left (and vice versa). Passenger flow is at good level during rush hours, with thousands of students using trains to reach the University and colleges in L’Aquila (with an increased amount of traffic after the earthquake); connections between Rieti and L’Aquila are made only by trains, while other routes are also covered by bus, but with increased travel times. Since 2009 Rieti can beneficiate of a new morning train to Roma Tiburtina (calling at Terni, Narni and Orte), taking only 90 minutes (direct bus Rome-Rieti takes the same time, but only without traffic jams). Other through services connects Perugia and L’Aquila (which are important University sites). Goods service only cover few kilometers between Terni and Terni Cospea, to haul steel sheets (goods trains along the rest of the line ceased in 1990s).
TECHNICAL FEATURES
The line has a length of 163km+198m, being a diesel single track railway. It has 36 stations and an isolated passing loop: Terni, Terni Cospea, Stroncone (closed), PM Stroncone (passing loop without passenger service), Marmore (with passing loop), Labro-Moggio, Greccio (with passing loop), Terria (closed), Contigliano (with passing loop), Poggio Fidoni, Rieti (with two passing loops), Cittaducale (with passing loop), Cotilia (closed), Sorgenti del Peschiera, Castel S.Angelo (with passing loop), Canetra, Antrodoco-Borgo Velino (with passing loop), Antrodoco Centro, Rocca di Fondi (with passing loop), Rocca di Corno (with passing loop), Sella di Corno (with passing loop), Vigliano d’Abruzzo (closed, passing loop removed), Scoppito (closed), Sassa-Tornimparte (with passing loop), L’Aquila (with four passing loops), Paganica (with passing loop), S.Demetrio ne Vestini (with passing loop), Villa S.Angelo (closed), Fagnano-Campana (with passing loop), Fontecchio, Tione degli Abruzzi, Beffi (with passing loop), Acciano, Molina-Castelvecchio (with passing loop), Raiano (with passing loop), Pratola Peligna Superiore, Sulmona.
FUTURE PLANS
The line is not comprised in any relevant plan; project for the electrification were shelved due to high costs and a lack of proper material. The idea to build a direct railway from Rome to Rieti as been always postponed since its formulation in 19th century, and today its construction is not very likely in the near future.
TECHNICAL DATA
| OPENING | 10 maggio 1875 |
| STATUS | Operational |
| OWNER | RFI |
| LENGHT | 164 km |
| No. OF TRACKS | 1 |
| TRACK GAUGE | 1435 millimetri |
| No. OF STATIONS | 29 6 closed |
| TYPE | Diesel |
| CONNECTIONS | At Terni towards Ancona At Terni towards Ancona Rome At Terni towards Ancona Sansepolcro At Sulmona towards Pescara At Sulmona towards Roma At Sulmona towards Carpinone (until Dec.2011) |
| GOODS SERVICE | from Terni to Terni Cospea |
STATIONS
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