Fiumicino Airport Cycle and Pedestrian Walkway

Cycling paths offer a unique opportunity to create ecological corridors, restore fragmented green networks, and improve microclimatic and landscape conditions. They promote healthy mobility, enhance territorial identity, and help re-establish the urban metabolism by embracing nature’s performative logic.

These principles define the new Cycle and Pedestrian Promenade at Fiumicino Airport, connecting airport offices, the railway station, Terminal 3, and archaeological sites. The path is articulated in two thematic journeys:

• the INTELLIGENCE OF WATER

• the CLIMATIC ADAPTIVE INTELLIGENCE OF VEGETATION

The first section crosses the Archaeological Area of Portus, part of the Ostia Antica Archaeological Park, and the site of the ancient Port of Claudius. Once shaped by water, the area recalls the historical struggle between siltation and land reclamation. The path features:

• permeable concrete ensuring drainage and soil respiration;

• bioswales and a rain garden filtering stormwater and road pollutants;

• a planting design evoking ancient water presence, with blue-flowering Mediterranean species;

• interpretive signage and rest areas for environmental awareness.

The second section, near the terminal, showcases a “Journey through Mediterranean species of five continents”—resilient, low-maintenance plants suited to climate change.

The path’s ochre tone recalls Mediterranean summer fields. Lighting is solar-powered and sensor-regulated, minimizing light pollution while ensuring soft, safe illumination.