Rome tops almost every traveler’s bucket list, and it owes that to its historic attractions and iconic streets that have been drawing tourists for generations! One aspect of that is its historic cobblestone streets that serve as a major feature of Rome’s history. Travelers absolutely love to walk down these streets and get clicked here. In fact, travelers love them so much that they sometimes even sneak off with a cobblestone or two they removed from these alleys to take home as souvenirs, as was revealed by a traveler in an apology letter once!
But, alas! Word has it that this popular Italian city is all set to replace these cobblestone streets with asphalt. It was revealed in an announcement last week by the Mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, that about 70 of Rome’s iconic busiest streets were to be replaced with smooth asphalt this year.
Why Rome Is Replacing Famous Cobblestone Streets
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While it may be a disappointment for many, Rome has some pretty good reasons for taking this step, people’s safety being one of them. For once, cobblestones are difficult to navigate on, and one’s fancy footwear tends to slip while walking on these stones, especially when the street is wet.
That’s not all. The stones have come loose because of continuous vehicular movement over time, causing nasty injuries to cyclists who tend to fall off their bikes owing to these loose stones.
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What Will Happen To Those Replaced Cobblestones
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Oh, so you really thought they would just throw those away and you’d never get to see them again? Gotcha!
These centuries-old stones will remain in Rome. They will be removed from the popular and busy streets of Rome and re-laid on smaller, less busy streets that are only used by pedestrians. “For every cobblestone that we remove from one road, we will be re-laying them in another,” conveyed Roberto Botta, a member of Rome’s City Council.
Roman authorities plan to lay these down on at least 118 streets of Rome. It would surely not be that hard to find these 118 streets in Rome, right?
What Makes These Streets An Attraction
Tourists aren’t even aware that these cobblestones in Italy are called ‘Sampietrini’ which translates to ‘little St. Peters’. These cobblestones actually play an important role in shaping Rome’s history. During the 60s, Italian protestors had used these very stones as a weapon, turning them into a symbol of the working class in Italy.
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So, if Rome had been lying somewhere in your bucket list for a long time, it’s time to move it up a few slots and pay it a visit before all those picture-perfect cobblestone streets get replaced. And you’ve got to do it now if you wish to avoid the heavy traffic that this construction work will bring along later this year. Get packing and take a Roman holiday before it’s too late!
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Kanika has 4 years of experience in writing blogs and marketing content for travel. And when she’s not writing, she’s either exploring new terrains in a different corner of the world, or out in the city freezing urban scenarios in her camera.
