«It is unacceptable that, while we are faced with such a serious situation, around 18 million euros are being spent on simple noise strips, which essentially serve to pre-warn motorists of the risk of leaving the lane and a possible impact, rather than concentrating resources on structural investments and on the replacement of safety barriers according to the standards required by current legislation» declares Pippo Lombardo, regional deputy of South calls North, speaking on the situation of the Sicilian motorways.
«The Sicilian motorways do not need stopgap interventions, but a serious safety plan. With this solution we have certainly not made the motorways safe: around 18 million are being spent to report a danger without structurally intervening to eliminate it. For this reason, in addition to the commissionership that we have already requested, we ask for the immediate finding of the resources necessary for the replacement of the barriers that are no longer up to standard and for all the other structural interventions that can no longer be postponed”.
Lombardo therefore makes a direct appeal to the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Sicilian Region. «At MIT we say with equal clarity: instead of dealing with aspects that do not fall within its competence, immediately make available the necessary resources to allow the replacement of barriers and concretely guarantee the safety of Sicilian motorways. Instead, we ask the Region to immediately activate extraordinary and urgent procedures. We can no longer afford delays while thousands of motorists travel every day on infrastructures on which such significant critical issues have been certified. Today we need real interventions: replacement of barriers, extraordinary maintenance, adaptation of infrastructure and a technical structure capable of spending resources quickly and correctly. Spending millions on bands that warn drivers of the risk cannot become the answer to a structural problem. The Ministry and the Region, each with their own responsibilities, must do their part and finally give concrete answers, putting aside the ongoing political disputes between Councilor Aricò and Vice President Sammartino. The safety of motorists cannot become a political battleground: the necessary resources and procedures are needed immediately to truly make the Sicilian motorways safe.”