Fuel prices are down compared to summer 2023, but those who decide to travel by car to reach their holiday destinations these days will have to face a bloodbath, between refueling costs and tolls. This is according to Assoutenti, which conducted a survey on some typical summer routes, comparing the cost of travelling by car with that of travelling by train. OToday, according to the latest official data from Mase, petrol costs an average of 1,851 euros per litre, 4.7% less than the average price in August 2023 (1,942 euros/litre), with a saving of around 4.5 euros per full tank. – Assoutenti analyses – Diesel costs an average of 1,730 euros per litre, -5.6% on August last year, with a decrease of over 5 euros per tank. However, the cost of fuel to cover some typical summer holiday routes by car remains very high: for example, between the outward and return journey, an average of 392 euros of petrol is needed to cover the 1,588 km that separate Turin from Palermo, to which 175.6 euros of motorway tolls must be added, for a total of 567.6 euros. The total cost of reaching Reggio Calabria from Turin is 491 euros (336 euros for petrol, 155 euros for tolls), 462 euros from Milan to Catania, 411 euros from Bolzano to Lecce.
It is cheaper to go to Cosenza from Rome: just 128 euros for petrol and 35.8 euros for tolls. Although train ticket prices have increased by +8.3% in the last month compared to the previous year, you can save by travelling the same routes by train, provided you are willing to travel at any time and face changes and connections, but even in this case the cost can increase significantly – says Assoutenti – For example, those who buy a ticket today for the Milan-Salerno route (outbound 24 August, return 31 August) spend a minimum of 100 euros per passenger if they do not have particular demands on the times and type of train, but can end up shelling out up to 426 euros by choosing the best connections. On the same dates for the Milan-Catania trip the ticket starts from a minimum of 284.9 euros and reaches 372 euros. From 269.7 to 321.9 euros the cost for the Turin-Reggio Calabria route, from 164.25 to 355 euros from Turin to Palermo.
«Transport is one of the items that has the greatest impact on Italians’ summer vacation expenses – denounces the president Gabriele Meluso – Given the high costs that Italians have to face for their travel, there has been no adequate improvement in services to users, with constant queues and slowdowns on the motorway and breakdowns and delays on the railway line. We are convinced that tariffs must be increasingly linked to the quality level of services provided, rewarding companies that take concrete action to eliminate inconvenience to citizens and penalising those that are less attentive to consumers”.