While the Roman Empire gets credit for masterminding modern roadways, they surely never envisioned today’s tangle of Vespas, cars, busses, and bikes buzzing haphazardly through the web of urban streets of today’s Rome. To the unsuspecting visitor, it’s a scene of complete chaos courting disaster at every intersection – cross at your own risk! The ancient urban engineers did foresee the need for a few safety-minded innovations. Thoughtful design such as sidewalks higher than roadways and pedestrian steppingstones that doubled as ancient speed bumps worked admirable for chariot and donkey traffic but prove woefully inadequate for today’s motorized steeds.
Despite the appearance of no-holds-barred movement on modern Roman streets, most local drivers behind any type of wheel typically adhere to the rules closely enough, at least by Roman standards. Coupled with the assist of round-abouts and other traffic control measures, calamity is kept from reaching epic proportions.
Recently, a beloved traffic management tradition has re-emerged in the center of one of Rome’s most chaotic intersections — the traffic controller upon his podium. A tradition since the 1920s, a sharply dressed officer sporting spotless white gloves has executed entertainingly choreographed directions to the delight of decades of Romans.
Known as the vigili, the current six or seven traffic officers fulfilling this duty hold court upon a podium in the center of perhaps Rome’s busiest and most important intersection: Piazza Venezia. The crossroads of three of the liveliest streets in the heart of Rome, the piazza is the critical junction feeding traffic towards Italy’s Parliament, City Hall, the Presidential Palace, and other noteworthy monuments. Originally, a wooden platform served as the officers’ island, each day dragged to the center of the piazza and back. A concrete, fixed pedestal eventually replaced it, but after years of repeated whacks from less-than-careful motorists, the city installed a retractable pedestal that predictably rises each morning to greet the onslaught of traffic.
That is until a little over a year ago. Decreased traffic due to COVID restrictions opened the door to repairing and repaving the piazza and its iconic black cobblestones known as sampietrini. A tradition on Roman streets since the early 1700s, these black basalt stones periodically come loose or fall away, dramatically increasing their already somewhat precarious nature. However, this improvement meant the podium and its officer would no longer be on the scene – yet another subtraction from the norm of everyday life.
It’s understandable, then, that the recent reactivation of the pop-up podium, the last of its kind in Rome, and its occupants were celebrated with much fanfare. Since 2004, Fabio Grillo has trained the small corp of officers holding the position of conductor, himself a still active controller. According to Grillo, the return of the podium is more than just a reinstatement of traffic control – it’s “as if some normalcy has returned.” Grillo adds, “It’s a wonderful job…we’re in the middle of this fantastic square which is a crossroads for Romans, tourists, everyone.”
Along with the return of the old, a new tradition has also commenced for the famed team of vigili – the addition of a woman controller. Cristina Corbucci, a political science major turned traffic warden, became the first female officer to stand atop the podium earlier this year. Her joining of the ranks has been met with much applause, especially from women. In a recent interview, Corbucci notes that she often hears words of thanks and praise from lowered car windows or Vespas as they pass, along with many smiles of encouragement. Corbucci adds, “It’s more like conducting an orchestra than performing a ballet…we need to make all the drivers understand what we are saying with our hands…slow movements that are more visible…”
The traffic controller’s elegant gestures and theatrical movements carried out with the “wedding cake” Victor Emmanuel monument serving as the backdrop create a beloved and symbolic scene that many consider as much a landmark as the nearby Trevi Fountain. Somehow, these officers make the job look easy, maybe even effortless. But as with most performance-based talents, the appearance of ease comes with great practice. An officer seeking the position must go through intense training under the guidance of the aforementioned Fabio Grillo, demonstrating the coordination, finesse, and stamina required for the job. Afterall, one errant wave in the wrong direction could be disastrous. But it’s also a two-way street. Motorists-to-be must be well-versed in the hand sign lingo and prove it as part of the written exam for obtaining an Italian drivers’ license.
Romans love their vigili, despite the position of control and ability to ticket the frequent infractions of drivers. The 1960 film Il Vigile might have something to do with it. Actor Alberto Sordi starred as a bumbling cop whose inept hand signals and feckless ways caused never-ending mayhem…and captured the hearts of many, elevating the status of the gesticulating traffic cop. The magic of the vigili didn’t escape Woody Allen in his search for locations for To Rome With Love (2012). As he came upon Piazza Venezia, there atop the podium was Pierluigi Marchionne, spinning and dipping as he guided the flow. Allen was captivated and rewrote the film’s opening to include this very scene. Other vigili, such as Mario Buffone, have become Roman folk heroes to many. Buffone’s thirty years of directing traffic, as well as training officers, endeared him as one of Rome’s most recognizable citizens.
While the tradition of leaving gifts at traffic pedestals as a part of the feast day of Epiphany (January 6th), ceased in the early 1970s, the cop atop the pedestal is still loved and revered. An endearing and enduring part of the Eternal City, Rome is glad to have this little piece of normal back up and gesturing.
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