Abandoned Railways, Renewed Pathways: Opportunities for Accessing Landscapes

The abandonment of railway lines and station buildings is the outcome of social, economic and technological developments that have changed the local infrastructure systems. Unlike many European nations, in Italy the strategic role of these resources is still undervalued. The paper proposes a methodological approach aimed at achieving the valorisation of railways and station buildings network through integrated actions. The disused railways are potential new pathways and the abandoned stations provide available spaces for new activities, supporting sustainable local development and regeneration processes. Considering disused railways and stations as integrated parts of a system, they can improve the accessibility of environmental, cultural and historical resources network. The proposed methodological approach identifies categories of variables adopting to face up to the case of the disused railway of Cancello-Torre Annunziata in the South of Italy. The International Competition of ideas "Green Boulevard - Parkways of the 3rd millennium" has been the occasion to confront with the research object through a planning testing that has successfully proved and won an award.