City hall unveils progress on ambitious archaeological and urban regeneration programme.Rome has outlined how far its new archaeological walk project has come, with work already finished on several stretches, including along Via dei Fori Imperiali which is set to be complete by 2027.The update on the CArMe project (Centro Archeologico Monumentale di Roma) was presented on Friday at the Museum of the Imperial Forums in the Markets of Trajan. City hall describes it as the largest urban transformation and heritage enhancement scheme ever carried out in the capital's central archaeological area.   A vast area, many projects The programme comprises more than 80 interventions, some complete, others under way and a few still at the design stage. Funded by Italy's post-pandemic recovery plan (PNRR), Jubilee money and other public funds, the investment currently stands at about €200 million.The area covers stretches from Piazza Venezia and the Imperial Forums to the Colosseum, the Palatine, the Caelian Hill, the Baths of Caracalla, the Circus Maximus and the Capitoline Hill. The CArMe project began in 2024 with an international competition for the New Archaeological Walk, won by a team led by studio Labics with Openfabric and Orizzontale. The Superintendency of Rome, the Metro C company, the Colosseum Archaeological Park and the state archaeological authority are among the bodies involved in the project. Via dei Fori Imperiali The most visible change will be on Via dei Fori Imperiali, which links the Colosseum and the central Piazza Venezia. It will become a boulevard with two central lanes reserved for traffic - public transport and taxis only - while basalt pavements will be raised to street level to give pedestrians and cyclists more room. Render di Via dei Fori Imperiali verso il Colosseo (Studio Labics). Large terraces will look out over the archaeological area. Missing pines will be replaced and their number increased, alongside other tree species planted using techniques designed to prevent future collapses. The paving, in sampietrini cobbles, travertine, basalt and gravel, is meant to help visitors read the orientation of the ancient forums. The plan also includes 20 visitor service centres, a renovated infopoint in front of the Basilica of Maxentius, and walkways and crossings to allow continuous, fully accessible visits to the Forums at both street and archaeological level. Work already completed Cycle and pedestrian routes on Via di San Gregorio and Via dei Cerchi are finished, as are improvements to Via di San Teodoro, Via del Foro Romano and Via della Consolazione. Mayor Roberto Gualtieri said Via di San Teodoro - between the Roman Forum and the Circus Maximus - is "no longer an open-air car park" and has been rediscovered by residents and tourists. Render della passerella di Via Bonella (Studio Labics). On Via dei Cerchi, a low wall will be removed to restore continuity with the Circus Maximus, and cars will be taken off the Capitoline Hill's ascent. Benches and bicycle racks are due by the end of the year. The Baths of Trajan exedra and underground gallery on the Oppian Hill are also complete. Monuments and excavations Heritage works include restoring the 33-metre surviving rear wall of the Forum of Augustus, which once separated the forum from the Suburra district. Part of the colonnaded court of Trajan's Forum will be rebuilt, and the forum's western library will open to the public. Excavations continue on Via Alessandrina and in the north-eastern sector of the Temple of Peace, while the link between Campo Carleo and Sant'Urbano will gain covered museum spaces. Looking ahead Walter Tocci, the project's coordinator, called the walk a story unfolding like "a necklace enriched with many precious stones", while capitoline superintendent Claudio Parisi Presicce said the area covers 106 hectares. A 20-year strategic plan, drawn up with universities, will go to public consultation. Gualtieri said the aim is to mend the relationship between ancient and modern Rome so that Romans "return to being protagonists" of these places, with millions of tourists benefiting too. Images: Studio Labics

Rome has outlined how far its new archaeological walk project has come, with work already finished on several stretches, including along Via dei Fori Imperiali which is set to be complete by 2027. The update on the CArMe project (Centro Archeologico Monumentale di Roma) at the Museum of the Imperial Forums in the Markets of Trajan. City hall describes it as the largest urban transformation and heritage enhancement scheme ever carried out in the capital's central archaeological area.   The programme comprises more than 80 interventions, some complete, others under way and a few still at the design stage. Funded by Italy's post-pandemic recovery plan (PNRR), Jubilee money and other public funds, the investment currently stands at about €200 million.

The area covers stretches from Piazza Venezia and the Imperial Forums to the Colosseum, the Palatine, the Caelian Hill, the Baths of Caracalla, the Circus Maximus and the Capitoline Hill. 

The CArMe project began in 2024 with an international competition for the New Archaeological Walk, won by a team led by studio Labics with Openfabric and Orizzontale. The Superintendency of Rome, the Metro C company, the Colosseum Archaeological Park and the state archaeological authority are among the bodies involved in the project. The most visible change will be on Via dei Fori Imperiali, which links the Colosseum and the central Piazza Venezia. It will become a boulevard with two central lanes reserved for traffic - public transport and taxis only - while basalt pavements will be raised to street level to give pedestrians and cyclists more room.
Render di Via dei Fori Imperiali verso il Colosseo (Studio Labics).

Large terraces will look out over the archaeological area. Missing pines will be replaced and their number increased, alongside other tree species planted using techniques designed to prevent future collapses. The paving, in sampietrini cobbles, travertine, basalt and gravel, is meant to help visitors read the orientation of the ancient forums. The plan also includes 20 visitor service centres, a renovated infopoint in front of the Basilica of Maxentius, and walkways and crossings to allow continuous, fully accessible visits to the Forums at both street and archaeological level. Cycle and pedestrian routes on Via di San Gregorio and Via dei Cerchi are finished, as are improvements to Via di San Teodoro, Via del Foro Romano and Via della Consolazione. Mayor Roberto Gualtieri said Via di San Teodoro - between the Roman Forum and the Circus Maximus - is "no longer an open-air car park" and has been rediscovered by residents and tourists.
Render della passerella di Via Bonella (Studio Labics).
On Via dei Cerchi, a low wall will be removed to restore continuity with the Circus Maximus, and cars will be taken off the Capitoline Hill's ascent. Benches and bicycle racks are due by the end of the year. The Baths of Trajan exedra and underground gallery on the Oppian Hill are also complete. Heritage works include restoring the 33-metre surviving rear wall of the Forum of Augustus, which once separated the forum from the Suburra district. Part of the colonnaded court of Trajan's Forum will be rebuilt, and the forum's western library will open to the public. Excavations continue on Via Alessandrina and in the north-eastern sector of the Temple of Peace, while the link between Campo Carleo and Sant'Urbano will gain covered museum spaces. Walter Tocci, the project's coordinator, called the walk a story unfolding like "a necklace enriched with many precious stones", while capitoline superintendent Claudio Parisi Presicce said the area covers 106 hectares. A 20-year strategic plan, drawn up with universities, will go to public consultation. Gualtieri said the aim is to mend the relationship between ancient and modern Rome so that Romans "return to being protagonists" of these places, with millions of tourists benefiting too. Images: Studio Labics