Italy makes popular pedestrian street one-way for foot traffic

The 'one way' rule will apply to the Naples street only during certain days and hours. Photo / Unsplash

An Italian town has introduced a one-way foot traffic rule for one of its streets, which has become overrun with people during the festive season.

The new rule went into effect on December 11 and will apply to anyone walking along Via San Gregorio Armeno in Naples during certain days and hours over the Christmas holidays.

Pedestrians will only be able to walk one-way from 9 am to 9 pm on December 7 to 11 and again from December 17 to 23. On Christmas Eve, the rules will be in effect between 9am and 3pm.

Rules will only apply to this particular street and these specific times due to the famously elaborate nativity scenes that are set up along the street, which attract hordes of people.

Nicknamed ‘Christmas Alley’, the street is set in the heart of Naples and home to several shops that sell antique and handmade nativity figures, some of which date back to the 18th century.

The street became a popular spot for these shops due to its proximity to the Temple of the Goddess Ceres, a fertility deity. Since worshippers typically brought small terracotta statues to the temple, craft shops that sold and repaired idols soon set up nearby.

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A one-way system has been implemented to protect the public, as safety was “dangerously compromised” during busy seasons, the council told CNN.

Because much of the street does not have sidewalks, the high tourist numbers lead to “situations of exceptional crowding” they added. In some cases, people have been literally trapped in a crowd and unable to get out.

Italy is no stranger to the issue and consequences of overcrowding. In Venice, unsustainably high tourist numbers have prompted the city to charge visitors a tourist tax if they only stay for the day, ban large cruise ships from certain areas and have its waterways declared a “national monument”.

These efforts got the city off UNESCO’s World Heritage danger list.