A round-trip ticket on the Tirrenia Porto Torres-Genoa ferry can cost €895 . A deck passage can cost up to €305. Resident discounts are sold out. Vouchers are not usable in the summer. And every time someone tries to return to the island, for work, health, study, or family, the bill is increasingly steep. Is this territorial continuity? This time, it's a double warning. On the one hand, the post-complaint by Nuoro entrepreneur Giampiero Pittorra, president of the Pratosardo Operators Consortium. On the other, the letter from Grazia and Caterina Sanna, also sent to the President of the Region, Alessandra Todde, documenting the disadvantages faced by residents.

The protest

"Sardinians are tourists forever, even when they travel for work." This is the opening sentence of Pittorra's post. The entrepreneur complains: "State tariff for residents, three people, return trip + car, Porto Torres-Genoa, 12 hours: €895!!!" And he adds: "Just a bridge crossing without a car can cost up to €305 one way and €185 the return." The alternative? "A flight from Olbia to Bergamo on August 29th for €616." A periodic drain, regardless of the reason for the trip, affecting students, commuters, entrepreneurs, and families. "Tourists are robbed when they arrive in Sardinia and then when they return. We Sardinians are tourists forever, robbed when we travel for work."

Pittorra recalls: "I was studying in Rome and returning to Sardinia spending just fifteen thousand lire (7.5 euros) on a bridge crossing. There was no continuity, but there was more government, more rights, and less state business." The entrepreneur cites the example of those from Lombardy to Puglia who always spend "160 euros on fuel and tolls, whether in January or August." Finally, his request: "We want true air and sea continuity with low, fixed fares."

«Act of looting»

Pittorra's complaint is supported by that of Grazia and Caterina Sanna . A family of two adults and a child, the cost for the Olbia-Civitavecchia route on August 30th was "around €600 for a deck ticket, a small car, and a cabin," they complain. This is an exorbitant price compared to fares at other times. Despite being Sardinian residents/natives, they were unable to take advantage of the discounts: "The reserved seats are sold out. We wonder how many were able to benefit." They call the price increases "an act of profiteering" and add: "They suggested we use the vouchers after September, but the initiative should cover the most critical routes (July-September). We want to return home; we feel our rights have been violated." The Sanna family's letter concludes with a call to the authorities to "urgently verify the correctness of the fare policies adopted, the actual application of the discounts provided, and the transparency with which the funds and benefits for residents are managed."

Unfair and opaque system

Giampiero Pittorra adds an element that illustrates how the current transport system penalizes Sardinia's productive fabric: "We waited to ship photovoltaic modules destined for Lombardy," the entrepreneur explains, "and pay less. The result? Modules worth €480 and a €570 trip. Insane." Another example of how insularity—in the absence of corrective measures—can limit development.

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