“Although we must admit that Milan’s mayor Giuseppe Sala raises a delicate subject that should not be underestimated as it aims at improving road safety, this regulation corners logistics firms.” These are the words of Leonardo Lanzi, CEO of Lanzi Trasporti s.r.l. and FAI Emilia’s chairman, who joins the debate alongside FAI Conftrasporto to help underline the critical points of the matter, specifically the lack of a uniform statute.

Giving unregulated freedom to the municipalities to impose their provisions on heavy vehicles does not simply impact traffic but can cause major issues for the logistics firms forced to adapt to every single request from the governors.

Italy comprises more than 8.000 municipalities, and if every single one of them imposed its traffic norms, the situation would become unsustainable.

First off, it would be almost impossible to follow all the latest updates. Second of all, the logistics companies would have to face extraordinary costs to comply with these ever-changing decrees.

Not long ago the region of Lombardy imposed the mandatory use of FAP systems (antiparticle filters) to tackle pollution. The region allocated grants to cover 50% of the assembly cost, but this only applied to vehicles originally registered in Lombardy. The other vehicles would have had to purchase the device without any financial support, and the inequality of the measure felt obvious.

A unified set of rules established at the national level is a must to prevent confusion, disadvantages, and differences. All businesses operating in the logistics industry should be granted the same rights to acquire the necessary tools to comply with traffic laws and be free to carry out their operations without unforeseen changes. We should remember that hindering the transportation of goods hampers the national economy and as a consequence the well-being of the Country.