Rail transport in Italy Rail transport in Italy The Italian railway system is one of the most important parts of the infrastructure of Italy, with a total length of of which active lines are 16,723 km. The network has recently grown with the construction of the new high-speed rail network. Italy is a member of the International Union of Railways (UIC). The UIC Country Code for Italy is 83. "RFI" ("Rete Ferroviaria Italiana", Italian Rail Network), a state owned infrastructure manager which administers most of the Italian rail infrastructure. The total length of "RFI" active lines is , of which are double tracks. Lines
Italy in the Middle Ages the invasion of the South, part of a 12th-century Byzantine effort to regain the influence it had held on the peninsula during the reign of Justinian. In the 11th century, the Normans occupied the Lombard and Byzantine possessions in Southern Italy, ending the six century old presence of both powers in the peninsula. The independent city-states were also subdued. During the same century, the Normans also ended Muslim rule in Sicily. Norman rule in what had once been Byzantine territory naturally angered Byzantium, which in 1155 made a last attempt under the Emperor Manuel I Komnenos to reassert its authority