Station, large waiting room empty and unmarked: "Few chairs and desolately inhospitable" / PHOTO

A large waiting room, often badly needed, "desolately empty and unwelcoming" because it's completely "unmarked." This state of affairs was reported by Marco Panti, a resident of the Santa Maria Novella station, on the right just after the end of the escalator leading to the shopping arcade. He stumbled upon the premises while walking, and subsequently shared the photos you see here, including those posted to FirenzeToday .

"By pure chance, I discovered that for at least a month, a completely hidden space has existed in the shopping arcade of the underpass, unknown to train passengers. A huge waiting room, with very few chairs, desolately empty and inhospitable. The entrance staff, in railway uniforms, claim, at least in theory, to be free for passengers waiting for their train," the citizen wrote.

But "there's no identifying sign at the entrance and no information upstairs. People are now accustomed to sitting on the station floor while waiting for delays and traffic jams, and they certainly don't think that this huge space exists downstairs, albeit without adequate seating and a reception area, even though a usable restroom is currently located at the back of the room."

The testimony continues: "Upon inquiry, the entrance staff say that the large, almost entirely bare waiting room is available to anyone with a valid Trenitalia travel ticket for the day. Such a large investment in such a bare and unmarked space is incomprehensible, however. The station's new waiting room, even if it's in the nearby commercial underground area, should be adequately marked, advertised, and equipped with chairs. Right now, it seems like more of a waste of money to justify some unexpectedly expiring National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP) funding. We hope we're wrong."

The premises would be located in a space formerly occupied by a clothing store, a place that is certainly "not easy to stumble upon," as underlined by city councilor Dmitrij Palagi (Left Common Project), who announced that he has submitted a question to the council and will bring the case to the city council.

"The box that ruins the skyline," the case of the former Teatro Comunale / PHOTO