On the night between July 9th and 10th, the Sardinian railway network will experience a significant moment: a four-carriage train will travel as fast as possible from Cagliari to Olbia and from there back to Cagliari. With peak speeds south of Decimomannu, reaching speeds of 150 kilometers per hour . There will be no passengers on board; sandbags will be loaded instead to simulate their weight. On curves, the carriages will lean like motorcycles to counteract centrifugal force and accelerate through them with a speed gain of approximately 20 percent. No intermediate stops are planned: from 10:30 PM to 5 AM, all level crossings along the line will be closed.
A dress rehearsal after years of network development and partial tests conducted in the utmost secrecy in recent months. Upon its arrival, it will be clear whether Sardinia—after a 17-year wait —is truly ushering in a new era: that of high-speed rail. With direct connections between Cagliari and the two most important cities in the north of the island (Sassari and Olbia), they will be fast, convenient, and competitive with other means of transportation. Air travel included.
The news was supposed to remain secret for a few more days. It was Olbia's mayor, Settimo Nizzi, who "broke the news" by telling Videolina journalist Silvia Orrù about the test, providing a timeframe: "Two hours and 15 minutes" between Cagliari and Olbia. The Ferrovie dello Stato Group press office has put the brakes on the news: the test and the closure of the level crossings have been confirmed, the date corrected (Nizzi had mentioned the night between the 10th and 11th), but no timeframe has been given. But completing it in two and a half hours, according to insiders, would be a success .
The star of the test will be a “Pendolino”, a four-car convoy hauled by one of the eight Caf diesel railcars with variable trim purchased by the Region for 78 million euros in 2009. The objective, on paper, was ambitious: to exploit the system that allows the railcar to tilt on curves to reach 180 kilometres per hour, reducing travel times .
