Residents, shopkeepers, students and workers in Caserta's Acquaviva district are calling for immediate work on the pedestrian railway underpass linking via De Martino, via Ferrarecce and via Acquaviva. The mobilisation, reported by Il Mattino, took place in piazza Sant'Anna, where associations and local committees set up stands, collected signatures and put forward proposals for the underpass.
The underpass is at the centre of the protest. According to Il Mattino, those using it describe darkness, dirt, flooding, the presence of homeless people, and reported thefts or assaults as reasons why fewer people are willing to pass through it.
A passage residents say they can no longer avoid
The pedestrian underpass connects the Acquaviva area with via De Martino and via Ferrarecce. Local reporting describes it as an alternative route around nearby railway level crossings, used by residents, workers and students when the crossings are closed.
That role makes its condition a daily issue rather than a marginal one. A June 2025 report by CasertaCE also described the via Acquaviva railway underpass as lacking lighting and affected by recurring flooding and maintenance problems, presenting it as an important connection when level crossings are shut.
The current status, ownership and maintenance responsibility for the underpass are not established by the sources reviewed. Likewise, the reported thefts, assaults, flooding frequency and safety conditions are presented through journalistic reporting and a petition; no police, engineering or municipal records were acquired to independently verify them.
Why Acquaviva matters in Caserta
Acquaviva is described as one of Caserta's most populous districts and a commercially active neighbourhood. A separate CasertaCE report on the district points to longer-standing complaints beyond the underpass: damaged roads, broken pavements, limited public space, traffic, parking pressure and concerns about security.
Those conditions help explain why the mobilisation in piazza Sant'Anna framed the underpass as part of a wider request for "interventi all'interno del rione" — works inside the neighbourhood — rather than as an isolated repair.
Population figures for the district vary between articles and should not be treated as an independently verified census total.
Regeneration plans cited, but timing remains unclear
Local reporting links Acquaviva to proposed regeneration works associated with PINQuA funding. The reported plans include improvements to roads and pavements, pedestrian and cycle routes, public green areas, a public underground car park, and upgrades to the A. Ruggiero middle school and Palavignola.
The reported plans were associated with almost 15 million euros in funding, according to statements attributed to the former municipal administration.
The timing, scope and completion status of those proposed works are unclear from the sources reviewed. The sources also do not confirm whether the recent civic mobilisation has produced a formal municipal response or a funded intervention.
What to watch next
For readers following the case, two practical points emerge from the verified reporting:
First, the underpass remains the pedestrian alternative when level crossings close, so lighting, drainage and regular maintenance directly affect students, workers and residents moving between Acquaviva, via De Martino and via Ferrarecce.
Second, any durable response would need to address both the underpass itself and the surrounding district issues — roads, pavements, public space, parking and security — that local reports have raised over several years.
Until municipal, police or technical records clarify responsibility, funding and timetable, the mobilisation remains a civic request rather than a confirmed programme of works.
