Italian Pedestrians Who Cross While on Phone Could Be Fined

Italy's transport ministry has drawn up an updated highway code that will target pedestrians who stare at their mobile phones while crossing the road, according to the Guardian. The move follows several court rulings that assigned blame for road accidents to careless pedestrians, the paper reported on Monday.

The draft code, which has not yet been approved by parliament, would introduce fines for distracted crossing. The Guardian noted that the measure is part of a broader effort by the transport ministry to improve road safety across the country.

For Tuscany, where narrow medieval streets in Florence and Siena fill with visitors navigating by phone maps, the rule touches a familiar tension between daily life and the postcard crowds. The region's historic centres were not built for the volume of foot traffic they now absorb.