Italy's New 'Italo' Train — Photo courtesy of NTV SpaFor the first time in Italy, travelers will have a new and innovative alternative to the state-run Trenitalia trains. The private company, Nuovo Trasporto Viaggiatori (NTV) has put into operation Italy's first trains to run on the Bel Paese's railways. The new trains called 'Italo' are said to be equipped with all sorts of modern amenities and will service various big cities around Italy including Rome, Florence and Venice.

NTV is first operator in the world to use the new Alstom AGV train, the train that currently holds the highest speed record for trains. Italo features a system of locomotion distributed throughout train cars, rather than concentrating itself in the front and back locomotives. Italo trains also promise to be friendlier on the environment. It offers extremely high environmental performance, with energy consumption reduced by 15%.

With its fleet of 25 trains Italo will offer travelers rich entertainment such as on-board entertainment, satellite TV, WiFi access and even a cinema carriage. NTV's mission and primary goals is to offer passenger services on high-speed lines complete with innovative features, attentive customer service and top quality at competitive prices. Other stations set to be serviced are Milan, Turin, Bologna, Padova and Salerno. The first Italo trains are set to run at the end of 2011 or early January 2012.