The Italian road freight transport sector - 2021

The fifth-largest European sector in terms of total activity, the Italian RFT sector has begun to show signs of recovery after a decade of stagnation.

On a structural level, the Italian sector is reorganised. Previously, the sector had a large number of owner-drivers, or "padroncini", but the size of the companies is growing and smaller companies owning one or two vehicles are disappearing.

In terms of costs, the increase in driver costs seems to have been modest and the renewal of the fleet has enabled the Italian flag not only to achieve average fuel consumption close to the European average, but also to reduce the cost of maintenance and repairs. Meanwhile, productivity has slipped.

According to CNR calculations, the cost per kilometre of an Italian 40-tonne heavy goods vehicle used for international long-distance transport has risen 4% since 2017. This increase is largely due to an increase in vehicle ownership cost (+8.5%) owing to the modernisation of the fleet.

Overall, total costs had increased to 1.33€ per kilometre by the end of 2021. Thanks to careful cost management, the sector has returned to its 2011 level of activity, with international operations representing a larger share than domestic business.

CNR invites you to discover this new study which brings details on Italian RFT with operating conditions in 2021.