Italy rail strike strands commuters and tourists in sweltering weather at height of tourism season

By NICOLE WINFIELD and LUIGI NAVARRA

ROME (AP) — A train strike across Italy has stranded workers and tourists alike on a sweltering weekday at the peak of high tourism season. The strike on Thursday even affected some high-speed lines that are usually guaranteed during Italy’s frequent transport stoppages. Transport Minister Matteo Salvini signed a decree ordering the two-day strike be cut in half. But even that truncated stoppage forced the cancellation of service up and down the peninsula. At Milan’s main rail station, for example, eight of 20 scheduled Trenitalia trains scheduled between 10:30-11:30 a.m. were canceled.