Rome's bus and metro company to offer refunds for poor service

ROME, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Rome's public transport company Atac has committed to offering refunds for poor service, Italy's competition authority said on Wednesday, ending an investigation of the publicly controlled body.

The regulator started investigating Atac in February for "possible unfair commercial practices" for allegedly not meeting quality standards during 2021-2023.

Atac failed to meet targets for punctuality, the functioning of escalators and lifts, and providing security guards at metro stations, among other issues, the regulator said at the time.

The investigation has been closed after Atac pledged to earmark more than 3 million euros ($3.5 million) for refunds to annual ticket holders, the regulator said on Wednesday.

Italy's competition authority also polices consumer rights.

Atac's Director General Paolo Aielli called the regulator's decisions "a stimulus, a further motivation to accelerate the process of change that Atac has undertaken in recent years."

IMPROVEMENTS WITH EU AND CATHOLIC HOLY YEAR FUNDS

Annual ticket holders for 2024 will receive 5 euros each, and an extra 5 euros will be given to holders of annual travel passes in any year between 2021 and 2023, the authority said.

The annual passes cost 250 euros, excluding concessions.

Atac will also introduce a new mobile app offering partial refunds to users in the event of delays of more than 15 minutes in regular bus, tram or metro services.

Public transport in Rome is notoriously inefficient, but Atac told the regulator it had improved thanks to EU post-COVID funds and government funding to prepare for this year's Catholic Holy Year.

Improvements include new buses already in circulation and new trams to be revealed soon, Aielli said.

As part of its commitments, Atac also pledged to hire more staff at metro stations and train existing personnel, with an annual investment of 2.6 million euros, the authority said.

(Reporting by Cristina Carlevaro and Alvise Armellini. Editing by Mark Potter)