Next Mobility Exhibition: a look back at Stefano Manelli’s participation

Next Mobility Exhibition is an event that brings together companies, operators, institutions and stakeholders around the transformation of urban, peri-urban and interurban mobility systems. It was in this setting, in Milan, that the « Innovability » conference took place, during which Stefano Manelli, director of Citec Italia and Large Events expert, took part in a roundtable dedicated to major events to share the lessons learned from his role as Head of Mobility for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games, highlighting the central role of transport as a key factor in the success and legacy of the event. Since 2018, planning for these Games required a profound change management process to transform the candidature vision into an operational system capable of handling complex international flows across highly diverse and challenging territories. The project relied in particular on strong integration between urban and alpine areas, through the coordination of institutions, operators and territories, turning fragmentation into an effective multimodal system built on collaboration.

A remarkable operational track record

Sustainability was a guiding principle (« sustainability by design »), with priority given to rail transport and low-carbon solutions for the last mile, in order to leave a lasting legacy beyond the Games. On the operational side, the system achieved a high level of performance, with over 600 buses operated by Busitalia and a punctuality rate above 99.5%, while alpine operators ensured seamless integration between Olympic services and local mobility networks. In Milan, the reinforcement of public transport made it possible to handle around 80,000 additional passengers, with over 70% of journeys made by public transport, well above the usual urban average. In conclusion, Stefano Manelli stressed that mobility represents the first and last point of contact with the Games: the primary indicator of organisational efficiency and one of the most significant legacies left to host territories.