Transport Minister Matteo Salvini
said on Tuesday he is open to the possibility of increasing the
speed limit from 130 km/h on certain stretches of Italian
motorway and in certain driving conditions.
"I am convinced that on some Italian routes that have an
accident rate that is close to zero, at certain times and in the
presence of three, four or even five lanes, a controlled
increase of the current 130 km/h speed limit could be considered
as in other European countries," Salvini told Radio 24.
This week the government is expected to present a road safety
bill to clamp down on incidents such as last Wednesday night's
crash in Rome in which a
five-year-old boy was killed by an SUV whose driver was
allegedly taking part in a YouTube challenge with the other four
occupants of the car.
Salvini told Radio 24 the proposed new measures include banning
newly licensed drivers from driving large cars for three years,
permanent loss of the driving licence for repeat offenders who
cause damage by drink driving, and harsher penalties for driving
with a mobile phone.
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