Five lots, over 31.6 million vehicle-kilometers per year, and a total estimated economic value exceeding €92 million, including contract payments and fare revenues.
The new tender for local public transport in the Como–Lecco–Varese catchment area represents one of the most significant steps in the reorganisation of local public transport in Lombardy. The Catchment Area Programme provides for a total of approximately 31.68 million vehicle-kilometres per year, divided into five territorial lots: Como and the Lake, Brianza Comasca, Lecco, Varese and the Valleys, and the Varese area. Added to these is the ‘Cable Car Lot’, already awarded in 2024. Economic estimates point to a total figure of approximately €71.03 million in tender fees and €21.31 million in expected fare revenue, for a total estimated value of around €92.33 million per year. The estimated average fee is €2.24/km, whilst average fare revenue accounts for approximately €0.67/km, bringing the average total economic value to approximately €2.92/km. The catchment area has a complex industrial structure: 1,343 employees in total as at 31 December 2024, of whom 1,234 are to be transferred to the new operators; a requirement for 857 buses, of which 516 are classified as essential and 215 are to be procured from scratch; and a network of 44 depots, some of which are considered essential for the continuity of the service.
Share on:
The tender for local public transport in the Como, Lecco and Varese catchment area is set to reshape the organisation of road transport services in one of Lombardy’s most complex regions. The new structure envisaged by the Catchment Area Programme is based on an annual service volume of approximately 31.68 million vehicle-kilometres, divided into five territorial lots, with a significant predominance of extra-urban services over urban ones.
Urban service provision amounts to approximately 9.4 million km per year, whilst extra-urban provision exceeds 22.28 million km per year. This figure confirms the polycentric and inter-provincial nature of the catchment area, where the service is not limited to mobility within the main urban centres, but performs an essential function in connecting territories, valleys, lake areas, industrial hubs, schools and railway junctions.
The lot with the highest mileage is Lot 4, Varese and the Valleys, with 6,936,341 km per year. This is followed by Lot 2, Brianza Comasca, with 6,559,795 km per year; Lot 1, Como and the Lake, with 6,291,950 km per year; Lot 5, Varesotto, with 5,975,218 km/year, and Lot 3, Lecco, with 5,919,043 km/year. The distribution therefore appears relatively balanced in terms of mileage, but not necessarily uniform from an industrial perspective, as each lot has different territorial, infrastructural and operational characteristics.
Source: Consultation Document of 9 May 2025 concerning the Como, Lecco and Varese catchment area
Estimated economic values of the tender
Based on the estimate prepared, the total value of the tender fees amounts to €71,025,760 per annum. Added to this is €21,307,728 in expected fare revenue, giving a total economic value of approximately €92.33 million per annum. The average value of the fee is approximately €2.24 per km. The expected tariff revenues average €0.67 per km. This results in an estimated average total economic value of approximately €2.92 per km.
Methodological notes for the economic estimate
2026 COMPENSATION:
The data are derived from the official allocation by the Lombardy Region (Regional Council Decision for 2024/2025), which has allocated a total of approximately €675 million to ensure the continuity of the service until 31 December 2026.
FARE REVENUES:
These have been estimated by applying a cost-recovery ratio typical of the Lombardy system (approximately 35% for Milan and 25–30% for other catchment areas).
Source: Regional Public Transport Observatory – Lombardy Region
Staff: over a thousand employees to be transferred
One of the key issues in the tender concerns staff. As at 31 December 2024, 1,343 employees were working in the services within the catchment area, equivalent to 1,243.7 FTEs. Of these, the document provides for the transfer of 1,234 employees to the new contractors.
The main component consists of driving staff, numbering 992 employees, i.e. approximately 80.5% of the total to be transferred. This is followed by 58 operations staff, 70 maintenance staff and 114 depot and administrative staff. The average annual cost per employee, based on 2024 figures, is stated as €44,441, with variations between the different lots.
This factor is particularly significant because labour costs represent one of the main components of the service’s operating costs. The sustainability of the tender will therefore also depend on the ability to properly absorb the outgoing staff, ensuring continuity of employment whilst maintaining operational efficiency.
Buses: 857 vehicles required, 215 to be procured from scratch
The rolling stock requirement is estimated at 857 buses, comprising 209 city buses and 648 intercity buses. The fleet consists of three main categories: 516 essential buses, purchased with public funding that has not yet been written off and is therefore subject to a take-over obligation; 126 available buses, for which the outgoing operators have expressed a willingness to sell or lease; and 215 missing buses, which will have to be supplied from scratch by the new operators to launch the service.
The need to source 215 vehicles is one of the key factors to be considered in the tender. This implies a significant investment requirement on the part of operators, particularly in a market phase where delivery times, fuel technologies, environmental constraints and financial availability may affect the ability to launch the service on time.
Depots and infrastructure: 44 facilities serving the catchment area
The infrastructure system comprises 44 depots used by the current operators. Geographically, there are 14 depots in the province of Como, covering 52,493 square metres, 9 depots in the province of Lecco, covering 24,133 square metres, and 21 depots in the province of Varese, covering 75,276 square metres.
Some infrastructure is classified as essential: the depots in Como (Via Colombo and Via Asiago), Lecco (Piazza Bione), Gallarate, Busto Arsizio and Golasecca.
A highly complex industrial tender
The Como–Lecco–Varese tender is not merely a procurement procedure, but a genuine process of industrial reorganisation of local public transport. The figures reveal a substantial catchment area, with an annual mileage exceeding 31 million kilometres, over a thousand employees involved, a substantial bus fleet and a widespread infrastructure network.
The sustainability of the operation will depend on the ability to balance three requirements: guaranteeing continuity and quality of service for users, ensuring the economic and financial equilibrium of the lots, and enabling operators to undertake significant investments, particularly in rolling stock.
The new contract will therefore serve as a test case for the Lombardy model of public transport organisation: a system called upon to combine efficiency, economic sustainability, staff protection, fleet renewal and service quality across very diverse territories.
