Safety on Lake Garda, clash in the Senate: Floridia attacks, Salvini responds

28 July 2026

 

Safety on Lake Garda, clash in the Senate: Floridia attacks, Salvini responds with figures

 

From illegal car gatherings to sustainable mobility funding, tensions flare between the senator and the minister during Question Time.

 

The debate over safety and mobility around Lake Garda reached the Italian Senate, turning into a heated exchange between Verona senator Aurora Floridia and Infrastructure Minister Matteo Salvini. At the center of the discussion were the incidents that occurred in July, when the Lake Garda area became the scene of illegal car gatherings involving hundreds of modified vehicles and thousands of participants, causing fear among residents and tourists alike.
 

Floridia recalled the most serious episodes, including a police car being rammed in Caprino Veronese, which left two Carabinieri officers injured, and a serious high-speed crash caused by a car in Peschiera del Garda. According to the senator, these events are only the tip of the iceberg of an increasingly unsustainable situation. She described safety along the Gardesana road as a "real threat" and an "absolute priority" that the government should address without delay.
 

In her parliamentary question, Floridia highlighted that the Gardesana is a strategic transport artery but remains highly vulnerable due to its geographical layout and exposure to landslides, a situation further worsened by an inadequate public transport network. She therefore asked the minister what initiatives and financial resources the government intends to deploy as part of a long-term strategy combining road safety, sustainable mobility and improved ferry services on Lake Garda.
 

Minister Salvini replied that the issue is being closely monitored and that, regarding the illegal car gatherings, the Ministry of the Interior has already stepped up enforcement measures. He presented detailed figures for the Province of Verona alone: 561 vehicles were inspected, 87 traffic violations were issued, two driving licences were suspended and six vehicles were placed under administrative seizure.
 

On the infrastructure front, Salvini referred to investments on the Verona side of the lake managed by Veneto Strade, which has already spent €2 million on maintenance work, with a further €650,000 earmarked for new rockfall protection barriers between Bardolino and Garda. He also announced an extraordinary €110 million industrial plan for lake navigation, aimed at making water transport a genuine alternative to road traffic, as well as feasibility studies for a future high-speed rail connection serving the Lake Garda basin.
 

Floridia said she was "deeply dissatisfied" with the minister's response, accusing him of presenting "misleading figures" based on feasibility studies rather than concrete funds already allocated to improve road safety. In a strongly worded rebuttal, she stated that "communities are mourning lives lost" because of decades of underinvestment and sharply criticized the actions of the Lombardy and Veneto regional governments. She concluded by arguing that citizens do not need "empty words" or promises that lead nowhere, and urged the minister to step aside in favor of someone "more competent."


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Fonte:
Sicurezza sul Garda, scontro in Senato Floridia Salvini
https://www.veronasera.it/politica/sicurezza-garda-scontro-senato.html
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