Garda, Lazise Traffic Changes During Easter Face Mixed Reactions
The new traffic arrangement in the centers of Garda and Lazise has faced a real maturity test during this Easter period. As often happens with trial runs, the final assessment shows a lack of alignment between teachers and students, in other words, between mayors and citizen drivers.
Understanding who is right is not an easy resolution, although a basic consideration must be made beforehand. If the goal of the administrations involved in the traffic revolution (Bardolino is missing from the list, delayed in its implementation) was to slow down and thus make the passage of four-wheeled vehicles safer through the towns divided in two by Gardesana, then the result has been, with everyone’s good will, fully achieved.
There is no doubt that speed has been drastically reduced, as it is equally true that the confusion among motorists entering Garda or Lazise has increased. The reason is easy to guess. The new road layout, still not completely finished with appropriate signage and lighting for nighttime hours, requires more attention from those driving, without forgetting the need for a general review of the right-of-way rules.
Reactions of the mayors and the future of the traffic system
Furthermore, there is a state of disorientation among many foreign tourists: accustomed to cruising at a certain speed, they hesitate to step on the accelerator when faced with the new setup, causing additional traffic jams. Traffic jams, after all, are unavoidable during certain periods and days of the year, whether placed around roundabouts now or previously at traffic lights.
But what do the mayors say? “The overall situation is positive. There are no longer long queues,” affirms Giorgio Comencini, mayor of Garda. “In my opinion, and based on positive feedback from more than one fellow citizen, traffic flow has improved. Of course, there are still important adjustments to be made. Primarily the signage, the new road surface, and the lighting of the mini roundabouts with special reflectors. These works will be carried out in the coming days. But a comprehensive judgment on the functionality of the new setup will have to wait until the upcoming phases that will involve areas near the parish church and Villa Albertini.”
“As for the definitive judgment,” concludes Comencini, “we will only be able to give it once the Urban Traffic Plan drafted by the Turin-based architect Bruno Gandino is fully implemented.” The mayor of Lazise, Luca Sebastiano, has never hidden doubts about the roundabout, which were dispelled once he received clear reassurances from the same designer.
“They conducted an in-depth study, lasting a year, on vehicle flow along the section of Gardesana affected by the new traffic layout,” Sebastiano reveals. “The roundabout was designed to smooth traffic in all directions and to prevent stagnation, which is exactly what is happening. The reduction of the provincial Verona-lake roadway, which feeds into Gardesana, is part of the logic of the new traffic plan. However, we are ready, if necessary, to adopt all appropriate solutions to make circulation more efficient.”
